I will be crowned king

As night falls, Black Reef Harbor, shrouded in lead-gray smoke, gradually fades from the hustle and bustle of the day into silence.

The defenders who had experienced a bloody battle all day huddled in the fortifications and camps that had been ravaged by the war, holding weapons and wine bottles. The fire flickered and exhaled white smoke from pipes and inferior tobacco, making them rustle in the cold wind. A trembling tired body can find some comfort.

The siege that lasted for more than ten days had worn away all the fear, passion, and ambition of these recruits; what was left was only fatigue, numbness, and the joy or pain of finding that they were still alive after enduring a whole day.

Cleaning the battlefield, mopping up the remnants of the enemy, treating the wounded, carrying corpses, repairing fortifications, and setting up sentries... Regardless of whether they had received training in this area or not, the more than ten days of siege used various methods to thoroughly learn and remember these tasks. Meaning, get busy spontaneously or in an orderly manner amidst the scolding of the officers.

War is the best place to temper new recruits - three months or more of training is far less effective than a real battle in molding and "training" a group of soldiers who don't even fully understand shooting.

If Anson is asked to evaluate, this group of Black Reef Port militiamen are probably more qualified to be called an "army" than 99% of the imperial colonial armies - if we really want to call those literal rabble The words of the army.

As for the Stormtroopers and the smuggling pirates in Red Hand Bay...as the "saviors" of Black Reef Port, they were specially arranged in a residential area of ​​Black Reef Port - most of them were originally the properties of local "loyalists". After the purge it became the property of liberals.

The Black Reef Port, which was previously fortified in order to deal with the imperial army, not only stockpiled a large amount of supplies, but also took advantage of the last period to send away some orphans, old and weak. In addition, coupled with the various casualties caused by the recent siege, this is why there is a blockbuster movie. Empty houses house thousands of them.

As the commander-in-chief of the advance army, Lieutenant Colonel Alexei said after landing that he was physically tired after a long and forced march and needed to rest as soon as possible. He even declined the welcome held by Black Reef Port for him and the soldiers of the advance army. Reception.

As for "miscellaneous matters" such as discussing how to face the siege of the Imperial Army, announcing the Confederacy and Beluga Port's follow-up support plan for Black Reef Port, and cooperating with the advance army and local militia to assist in defense, they were naturally left to the Lieutenant Colonel. The "Adjutant" is in charge.

As for how to persuade the unfamiliar "Party A" to accept his full plan, Anson feels that even if he cannot say that he has rich experience, he is at least very confident - the most important trick is to let the other party express as much as possible without violating the principles of the plan. own ideas, and then use the art of language to convince him that his plan perfectly meets his needs.

After all, war is a science that pretends to be an art. Especially in a disadvantageous situation, there are not many choices left for people, and time is even more limited. At this time, Party A is usually very practical and does not require the plan to be "original." "Sex" may "give him a different surprise."

There are even fewer options left for Black Reef Port at the moment. Fortunately, there is only one goal: to ensure that the imperial army cannot capture the defense line and the city before reinforcements arrive.

Based on this goal, Anson needs to gain actual control of the entire city defense - of course, it is only "actual" control. In name, the Black Reef Port Council can do whatever they want.

But just like there are no two identical leaves in the world, and there are no identical raindrops; when the meeting officially started, he discovered that the ideas of both parties were not on the same level at all.

……………………

"So... when will the advance army prepare to organize our evacuation?"

A slightly larger long table lay across the center, occupying a quarter of the space; MPs holding pipes and dressed in different styles sat on the back benches on both sides or in the back; two kerosene lamps hung in front of and behind. Above everyone's heads, a hazy light reflected in the swirling smoke.

This is the basement of the Black Reef Port Parliament. Since the imperial army besieged the city and occasionally began to bombard the city across the range, all meetings have been moved from the original hall to here.

Of course, this amount of space was not enough in the past, but since the siege began, people have been evacuated and sacrificed one after another. In addition, the Speaker of Black Reef Port and a group of parliamentary representatives went to Wintertorch City to attend the Confederation meeting. Counting the officers, the entire Black Reef Port Parliament can also make it. There were no more than a hundred people, so it was more than enough for everyone to hide in the basement.

"Evacuate?"

Anson, who was sitting at the end of the long table, crossed his fingers on the edge of the table and looked at the congressman who had just spoken in surprise: "What we want to discuss is how to defend Black Reef Port. Where is the evacuation?"

"But now Black Reef Port can no longer be defended!"

The congressman looked very anxious, and the cold sweat on his forehead could be clearly seen even in the smoke: "You have seen today's situation - the imperial army outside the city has destroyed the fortress on the right highland, and the entire defense line has It’s not safe anymore!”

"Okay, even if this is nothing, the fighting over the past ten days has depleted the entire city's arms reserves; now we not only have to collect battlefield seizures, but also civilian homemade firearms, lead bullets and The supply of gunpowder has even reached the bottom - each soldier has an average of less than forty rounds!"

"The reason why there is no shortage of weapons is that the number of casualties offsets the losses, and it is required that unless the enemy attacks within fifty steps, they can only hide in the fortifications and are not allowed to fire back - otherwise we would have long ago We’re out of ammunition and food.”

"Under such circumstances, to be honest, do you think there is still hope for Black Reef Port to be defended?!"

The words full of despair collided back and forth between the closed walls, which seemed very harsh.

Perhaps because of excessive excitement and fear, the congressman blushed, put his hands on the table, panted slightly and stared at the smiling and approachable "Captain Alan Dawn".

Anson adjusted the monocle on his face, smiled calmly, met the other person's gaze, and then slowly turned to his side: "This is..."

"Pushwood!"

Before anyone else could speak, the congressman who slapped his chest was the first to answer: "The congressman of Black Reef Port and the vice president of the Chamber of Commerce specializes in the timber business from Sail City to Changhu Town."

"Dear Lord Pushwood, I can understand your mood at this moment. Really - as a soldier, I have been in situations like being surrounded and running out of ammunition and food more than once."

With a formulaic "template" of sincerity, Anson spoke softly: "But as the adjutant of the commander-in-chief of the advance army..., the order I received is to assist you in resisting the siege of the imperial army until reinforcements arrive, not to take you to evacuate from here. "

"Dear Alan Dawn...Captain, we can understand that you want to carry out the commander's order, but Black Reef Port is really undefendable!" Faced with Anson's sincerity, Councilor Pushwood was not prepared to give in at all:

"No disrespect intended, but I really don't think that with the assistance of your army and the sea...the Confederate Navy, which is less than a thousand people, Black Reef Port can withstand the siege of the empire."

"And this is not just my opinion - all the upright Black Reef Harbor councilors and officers present think so!"

In order to prove that what he said was true, Pushwood let go of his hands on the table and sat back down, pursed his lips tightly and stopped talking.

"Yeah?"

Anson chuckled without changing his expression and glanced at everyone present.

Under the dim lights and thick white smoke, some of the people caught by his gaze had expressions on their faces, some had their eyes dodged, some coughed and nodded, and some were thoughtful...

No one spoke, but they had said everything they wanted to say.

The atmosphere in the already depressing basement was like a tomb.

I have to admit that this result was indeed far beyond Anson's expectation - he originally thought that the worst would be that Black Reef Port would be completely divided, with the main war faction and the capitulation faction fighting to the death, leaving the already endangered colony only half a step away. Can blow himself up to the sky by himself.

I never expected that this group of people would be united as never before, and they would be united under the banner of "run away with a bucket".

This is a bit difficult to handle.

But it doesn't matter. It's not like I haven't seen Party A Anson who has completely different ideas from my own; as long as the result meets his expectations, it doesn't matter what the process turns out to be.

So he was going to change his mind.

"In this case, even if Lieutenant Colonel Alexei can disobey military orders and organize a retreat, how are you going to leave Black Reef Port?" Anson asked without changing his expression:

"All roads on land have been blocked by the siege positions of the imperial army. A few or a dozen people may have hope of passing through the defense lines and escaping into the wilderness. A large-scale retreat is simply unrealistic."

"As for the sea... we do have four three-masted sailing ships that can be used as transportation vehicles during retreat, but the number they can carry at a time is also very limited. Counting sailors, the maximum number is a thousand people."

"If I remember correctly, the population of Black Reef Port should be about 50,000. In time, the ship will not have any accidents, and the empire will not find out. It will take at least fifty round trips to complete the evacuation."

"No, no, no! You misunderstood. I didn't mean to ask the advance army to move the entire Black Reef Port."

Pushwood shook his head violently and tried to explain: "We just hope that the advance army can help everyone here, as well as all the loyalists and their relatives in Black Reef Port to evacuate, that's all."

"As for the number of people... I can't give you a detailed list now, but it should not exceed 1,500 people; compared to the advance army and the four battleships, this is not a very exaggerated number."

oh?

Looking at his serious expression and the looming eyes full of hope and desire around him, Anson, who had always maintained an approachable smile, suddenly "suddenly realized":

"I see, you mean to have the advance army abandon Black Reef Port and the more than 50,000 local people, protect you and your families, and escape...from the siege of the imperial army?"

Pushwood's face froze.

The surrounding officers and congressmen remained silent, but they were communicating quickly with each other with their eyes.

Dead silence lasted for nearly half a minute again.

"Dear Captain Alan Dawn, we know this is bad, very bad, but..."

Pushwood paused for a moment, sighed heavily, and suddenly raised his head and met Anson's eyes:

"But! Please don't doubt that we are all liberals who are absolutely loyal to the Confederacy and our allies in Beluga Harbor, and will never betray our own people!"

"I can tell you clearly that everyone here participated in the battle against the empire, and everyone was injured! We would rather commit suicide than be captured by the empire. As long as there is a chance, each of us is willing to fight against For the rule of the empire, fight to the last moment!”

"But if Black Reef Port really cannot be defended, why are we wasting our lives here? We are Black Reef Port; even if it is for Black Reef Port to be restored one day, we cannot be so meaningless. 's death."

"As for other local people..." Pushwood sighed again and said with a very helpless tone:

"For the future of Black Reef Port, we can't care about so much for the time being; and if all of us loyalists leave, even if the empire maintains their rule here to be stable, it shouldn't cause too much harm to them. Bar?"

should?

Anson raised his brows quickly and glanced at the congressmen and military officers around him who were nodding in agreement, but did not make any statement on such well-founded and convincing words.

But the opponent's attitude is so tough and unified, which is indeed a problem - if the empire has not yet invaded the territory with a large army, Anson will definitely be happy to send such an ally who is self-aware and willing to cooperate; now that he is surrounded by enemies on three sides, any slight change will make the entire The city is torn apart.

To put it bluntly, if he was the colonial minister outside the city now and knew everything about the situation inside the city, he would not even need to send troops, and Black Reef Port would be captured by himself.

After a long silence, Anson finally spoke in full view of the public.

"Well, since you all think so, then as an outsider, it's not convenient for me to continue to say anything." Anson said expressionlessly:

"I will report this matter to Lieutenant Colonel Alexei to see what his attitude is on this matter; if he agrees and everything goes well, assisting you in evacuating from Black Reef Port... is not out of the question."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone in the depressing basement breathed a sigh of relief, as if they had been granted amnesty.

"Thank you! Thank you for extending a helping hand to those of us who are desperate!"

Pushwood, who was still tense just now, suddenly smiled as if he was a different person. He excitedly passed several people in front of him and stepped forward to hold Anson's hands:

"I assure you that as long as things go well, Black Reef Port will never forget your outstanding contribution! When you arrive safely at Beluga Port, you will be given a big surprise..."

"boom!"

With a sudden loud noise, the basement door was suddenly forced open.

A young man wearing the clothes of the Black Reef Port militia and holding a rifle in his arms rushed into the room and shouted in a panic as he ran:

"No, it's not good! The Clovis we sent to steal the ship were hidden on the deck... uh uh uh!!!"

Before he could finish speaking, the two guards standing guard at the door were shocked and immediately stepped forward and covered his mouth.

But it was too late.

Under the dim light, Anson, who was still smiling, remained silent and just gently adjusted the monocle on his face.