In the Name of the Queen

Although Jace's movements were as swift as the wind, David's madness was beyond his expectations.

Perhaps he felt something was wrong, so David took action in advance, poured the prepared alcohol, gunpowder and kerosene on the periphery of the warehouse, quickly ignited it, and then evacuated the scene at high speed with his confidants.

If Jace had not given a timely warning, this sudden fire would have burned down the entire warehouse area.

The fire would not only devour more than 300 soldiers guarding the warehouse, but also burn more than 100,000 tons of temporarily stored food.

This is life-saving food that can help hundreds of thousands of people survive the food shortage period.

Fortunately, Jace discovered it in time, and the cavalry who went to the rescue also brought simple fire-fighting equipment, and the fire was quickly brought under control.

Although the fire was effectively controlled, two independent warehouses were still burned, and more than 700 tons of food were lost.

In this fire, a warehouse guard was unfortunately killed and three people were injured.

The furious Jace led the cavalry to act quickly and controlled Larbert and others who stayed in the port area.

But he encountered some trouble when taking over the ship.

David found that the situation was not good and boarded the escort sailing ship Kairun overnight.

The squadron stationed in Hong Kong pursued him overnight, but the escort ship was lighter and faster, so he still escaped.

In addition to the desperate David, there were thousands of other crew members who were disarmed.

When Larbert's guards saw their boss being captured, they quickly collapsed and disarmed. Only a few diehards tried to recapture Larbert.

They were naturally greeted by neat multi-stage musket volleys.

Jace was not a knight, so of course he would not tie his hands and feet.

Even if he was a knight, he would never talk about chivalry with these scumbags.

Based on the reasonable suspicion that all Samaritans might be accomplices, Jace took out the silver dagger given by the Queen, took over the port troops, and captured all the Samaritan merchants in one fell swoop.

In the face of powerful force, the usually arrogant Samaritan merchant armed forces were frightened and turned pale. How dare they resist, they just kept shouting injustice.

Merchants from other countries and chambers of commerce did not stay proud for long. Jace ordered them to go to Hansa City for investigation on their own.

The reason why they were not arrested together was because there were not enough prisons.

When the sun rose, the resolute Jess took control of the entire port authority at the first time.

He even put the director of the port authority, Schmidt, under house arrest.

The reason was simple. Even if Schmidt had only a 1% chance of being connected with the Samaritans, the consequences would be very serious. Schmidt was also responsible for such a big incident last night.

Schmidt wanted to explain that he had arranged for manpower a long time ago, but facing the aggressive Jess, he knew that no matter how he explained, it would be useless, and he could only accept the fate of being under house arrest.

The residents of Emre Port were awakened by the commotion in the second half of the night and ran out to see the spectacle of the flames being ignited and quickly extinguished.

They didn't know that this was not an ordinary fire, but the fuse that was about to burn the whole world.

Jess didn't know that at the same time he took action, a scout released a pigeon back to Hansa City overnight to inform everything that happened in Emre Port.

Shortly after he took action, the hunting operation in the three overseas provinces also began.

The only regret was that because Jace acted too suddenly, the Fourth Fleet, which did not receive the news in time, acted a little slower, causing many Samaritan merchants in the northern port to flee.

On the day the operation ended, Jace wrote a handwritten letter detailing everything that happened in Emre Port, took the initiative to admit responsibility, and was willing to take responsibility for the consequences of the hasty action.

Shortly after the handwritten letter was sent, Brigadier General Daelon came to the port area, took over the army, and asked Jace to return to Hansa immediately.

Looking at Jace, who looked calm, Dai Long said softly: "Jace, because of your rash action, two of the nine main targets of the hunting plan escaped, and three of the fifteen secondary targets escaped."

Jace was silent for a long time, and slowly said: "I will apologize to the Governor. But I had no choice at the time. I can't stand by and watch my comrades who might be in danger die."

Day Long looked at the firm look in Jace's eyes, sighed softly, and said helplessly:

"Jace, what is the order from the Governor?"

"Inspect and monitor the grain handover in Emre Port, and report any problems immediately." Jace's voice gradually lowered.

What he did was indeed beyond the scope of the order.

If he didn't consider the 300 soldiers guarding the warehouse, he could have just sat back and watched.

After all, the warehouse had fire prevention measures, so it wouldn't burn down completely.

Even if it burned down completely, these losses would be much smaller than the losses caused by some merchants fleeing because of his arrest of the Samaria merchants.

If no one was arrested, but the investigation process was carried out step by step, these merchants would not be scared away.

"To save a few injured rabbits, but let the wild boar that was about to fall into the trap escape. This is a tactical victory, but a strategic failure."

Jace opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

He really wanted to ask about the 300 warehouse soldiers?

The words froze at his lips.

Any action has a price, and these people are probably the price.

Watching Jace slowly lower his head, Dai Long shouted softly, interrupting his wild thoughts.

"Don't think about it, the Governor will not use any soldier as cannon fodder. But no one thought that these people would be crazy enough to burn down the warehouse to settle the accounts."

Dai Long sighed softly and reminded: "You are right to put out the fire. Those are our comrades. Of course we have to save them, but you shouldn't react so aggressively after putting out the fire. Pretend that you didn't catch anything, control the dock and don't scare away Samar." Leah businessmen are the best option.”

Jace wanted to argue that he didn't know the governor's strategic plan, but he couldn't say it.

It's true that Roland didn't tell him, but he was around the Queen and the Governor every day. Couldn't he see it at all?

Jace lowered his head guiltily, not knowing what to say.

Seeing his ashamed look, Dai Long patted his shoulder and said with a smile:

"Young man, don't be too frustrated. Her Majesty the Queen and the Governor are sensible people, and your approach was correct under the circumstances."

"Go ahead and remember not to make excuses. The Governor doesn't like people who make excuses after the fact."

Jace looked at Dai Lon gratefully and saluted him vigorously.

He handed over command of the cavalry force to Brigadier General Dailon and returned to Hansa single-handedly.

Looking at his retreating back, Dai Long's lips showed a smile.

This is the spirit of young people.

If he were ten years younger, he might be as passionate as Jace.

To be fair, if you only focus on Emre Port, there is nothing wrong with Jace's approach, and it is even the optimal solution.

The local optimal solution has become poison to the overall layout.

He was more concerned about how Roland dealt with Jace than how Jace reported to Roland.

The best ending he could think of for Jace was to be promoted to another rank and then transferred out of the post.

This is already the result of Roland having enough courage.

The reason is simple. Leaders never make mistakes. If they are wrong, it is the fault of their subordinates.

The Queen can make no mistakes, and neither can the Governor.

However, the originally perfect hunting plan went wrong. Whose fault is it?

Lieutenant Colonel Jess doesn't want to carry it, so why should Roland do it?

Dai Long sighed and walked towards the port authority. He had to let Schmidt out first.

If Jess was forced to make a choice that seemed right but was wrong, then Schmidt did nothing but was detained by Jess.

Even if Jace had a reason, it was too offensive.

Although Jess is not his direct subordinate, he is still willing to help the young man deal with the aftermath.

The atmosphere in the governor-general's jurisdiction was the best he had ever seen in his many years of service in the army. He was eager to make achievements and even more to protect it all.

Jess was neatly dressed in the uniform of a cavalry lieutenant colonel with a calm expression. He changed horses and drove all night, returning to Hanseatic City in just one day and one night.

Regardless of whether he did it on purpose or accidentally, the outcome was ultimately worse.

Whether Governor Rowland forgives or not, he will admit his mistakes.

At the military camp at the city gate, he handed the horse to the cavalry captain and walked towards the Governor's Palace in the central square with a calm expression.

He felt magnanimous in his heart. No matter whether Roland was angry or whatever, he accepted it calmly.

Adults must be responsible for their own choices. This is what my father taught me.

Standing at the door of the Governor's office, he knocked on the door and announced his name.

"come in."

Roland's voice was a little hoarse.

Jace opened the door and saw Roland explaining the situation to Count Sif in front of a map.

Of course he knew that the earl was the queen, but she was wearing the earl's uniform now.

"Lieutenant Colonel Jess, thank you for your hard work. Sit down."

Roland pointed to the seat opposite Sif and motioned for him to sit down.

Jace couldn't say what he was holding back, so he had no choice but to salute Roland and Sif and sit down opposite.

He didn't dare to sit firmly and just rubbed the seat with the tip of his buttocks.

Roland knew that he was scared, so he didn't say anything to him and just continued to explain to Sif.

"The two presidents of the Chamber of Commerce who slipped away are Beleni and Veron. The business of the Beileni Chamber of Commerce is mainly ocean trade, the bulk of which is spices, luxury goods, arms and slaves. This is a business that can be hanged ten times and is considered cheap. guy."

Sif nodded and said nothing.

Jace's face turned gloomy and he lowered his head slightly.

Roland continued: "Weilon's voice can be seen in all walks of life. In addition to his official business, he is also the largest mercenary leader in the Southern Continent. He controls hundreds of tribes in the Southern Continent and is the de facto king of the Silver Coast."

"Unfortunately, we have two more difficult enemies."

Weilong could return to the Southern Continent and become the local emperor, but the living conditions in the barbaric Southern Continent were far inferior to those in the three overseas provinces, so he took the risk and came to Hansa.

Even when he comes, he is very alert and always stays at the port. If there is any disturbance, he will immediately run away faster than a rabbit.

Sif's face was solemn, and Jace was sweating profusely. He finally realized how much trouble he had caused this time.

He didn't even dare to wipe his sweat and could only listen obediently.

Sif glanced at him from the corner of her eye and sighed softly: "Unfortunately, the two people who ran away are more dangerous than the other seven people combined."

"This is normal. The other seven big businessmen are at least engaged in legal business on the surface. These two guys are doing illegal business even on the surface."

Roland smiled and said: "There is only one chance to trap them."

Sif shook her head and sighed, while Jace looked ashen.

After Roland finished his summary, Jace couldn't help but stand up and apologize to Roland.

"My Lord Governor, Lord Earl, I am willing to accept any punishment!"

"Punishment?" Roland asked with a smile, "What's your fault?"

Jess bit his lip and murmured somewhat dejectedly: "On impulse, I destroyed the Governor's overall plan and allowed the most dangerous target to escape."

Listening to Jace's apology, Roland laughed heartily and asked calmly: "According to military regulations, what should be done when friendly forces are in trouble?"

"Do your best to rescue!" Jace answered in seconds.

"Then what did you do wrong?" Roland asked with a smile.

Jace was stunned. He secretly observed Roland's expression and did not see any weird expression or implicit anger.

The Governor's expression was very calm and his eyes were very clear.

Is he really not angry?

Looking at Jace's somewhat puzzled expression, Roland said calmly: "You didn't do everything right. You did do something wrong that day. Who asked you to put Director Schmidt under house arrest?"

"He is higher in rank than you and is the person in charge of Emre Port. Who gave you the power to detain him?"

Jace was sweating profusely when asked by Roland.

Only in a state of war can the person in charge of the garrison have the power to temporarily take over the management of the city.

By doing this, Jace was tantamount to defining the action that day as a war.

Seeing Jace's trembling expression, Roland restrained his smile and said loudly:

"Lieutenant Colonel Jace, you handled the special request promptly and decisively, performed your inspection and supervision diligently, and basically completed the task successfully. I decided to promote you to cavalry colonel. This appointment still needs His Majesty's decision, but it should not be a big problem."

"Congratulations, Colonel Jace."

Jace was stunned.

He caused such a big trouble, but he was promoted?

He even forgot to express his gratitude to Roland.

Looking at Jace's dazed expression, Roland smiled and said: "Rewards for merit and punishments for faults. You exceeded your authority to imprison Schmidt, which is a serious mistake. First of all, deduct all your performance points for this action, secondly, you have to apologize to Schmidt in public, and finally deduct three months of your salary to buy Schmidt a truck of beer. What do you think?"

Jace finally woke up from his confusion and saluted Roland immediately.

He lowered his head to hide the tears in the corners of his eyes.

He never dreamed that Roland would deal with it like this.

If it was the Minister of the Army, he would definitely take the blame.

But he still asked with some concern: "Governor, the two chambers of commerce escaped."

"Escaped? Did I allow them to escape?"

Roland pointed to the route to the north port and said with a smile: "There is only one route to the sea from the north port. Although the Fourth Fleet has not assembled in a hurry, they can catch up as long as they are given half a day."

Jace wanted to ask where this half a day came from, but he didn't dare to ask.

Seeing his hesitation, Roland said calmly:

"If you want to keep the friends who escaped from the sea, you have to ask the friends under the sea to help."

It's time for the Siren Corps to prove its strength.

Mr. Veron, Mr. Belenni, you who can't even resist the temptation of money, can you withstand the singing of the sirens?

Roland's mouth corners slightly raised, forcibly suppressing the urge to open a bottle of champagne.

No hurry, wait for Munina to come back and open it together.