There was a saying on Freia: 'You only regret not having enough soldiers when it comes to war'. It was a reference to the matchlock style of warfare. That was why many countries on the continent had adopted large corps.
For example, a squad of 12 soldiers or a folk of over 30,000 soldiers.
However, the expenditure of so many soldiers during peacetime was a huge burden on the country's finances. So, most countries only had two or three standing corps. During wartime, they would recruit new soldiers to form new corps.
What Claude said was the truth. The kingdoms of Moroshik, Lesnia, Vasilico, and Opsaro along the southern coast of Freia, as well as the city-states of Opsaro, had all mobilized for war and were recruiting new soldiers to form new corps.
However, the first three countries were mobilizing for war while the latter was only preparing for war. They were only preparing to form a corps. After all, the flames of war hadn't spread to their colonies yet.
Although the other countries on the West Coast did not mobilize their troops for war, they also sent their troops to the colonies. At the same time, they also strengthened the monitoring and management of the indigenous people in the colonies, so as to avoid a repeat of the three unfortunate countries, the Kingdom of Morosik, the Kingdom of Lesnia, and the Principality of Vasilko.
However, it would take at least half a year to recruit recruits to form an army, conduct military training, and then transport them to the colony to fight. Therefore, General Beechlin still had about eight months of preparation time to deal with the attack of 400,000 to 500,000 troops from the three countries …
Claude recalled Birkin back to the region to take his place because the region was facing a difficult problem: they were running out of money and had to find a way to earn some extra income.
What Claude chose to do was to start a war to rob a country of its wealth. There was nothing more profitable than that.
If they hadn't carried out Operation Wildfire, they could've gone through the military reform and reduced the number of troops and local garrisons. That would've been more than enough to pay for the military. There was even a reserve of 20 million crowns in the Minsheng Bank, all of which was looted from the Nasrian Kingdom.
As long as Claude didn't waste it, the money would be enough for the region to live comfortably for the next decade.
But if one didn't plan for the future, they would have to worry about the immediate future. He knew that he had to turn the west coast colonies into the region's backyard and dumping grounds to ensure the region's economic development for decades to come.
This forced the autonomous military zone to carry out the Wildfire Plan and use it to train the low-level officers and senior commanders of the autonomous territory.
Otherwise, if the soldiers were allowed to lie comfortably on the merit books and sleep, then even the most elite troops would quickly become useless. Their silver spears were like wax spears.
Moreover, the various colonies on the West Coast had already imposed a trade ban on the overseas autonomous region, which was a blatant display of hostility. It was no wonder that the autonomous region's parliament members declared war.
Cutting off one's path to wealth was akin to killing one's parents. The overseas autonomous region relied on cheap and high-quality goods to sell well across the entire West Coast, ushering in the rapid development of the autonomous region's manufacturing industry.
Now, the colonial countries of the West Coast had banned the products of the overseas self-governing territories from entering their colonial markets. This was simply an irreconcilable hatred …
However, Claude didn't think that the Wildfire Plan would cost so much money. The military expenditure alone was more than 12 million crowns.
That included the cost of forming the two Shiksan folk, providing the pamigar and losman, as well as the skoros and gisds of Vasilico's colony, as well as providing the pamigar republic with ammunition.
Based on Claude's impression, Operation Wildfire would require the region to provide some weapons and ammunition for the natives to form a few armed squads to fight against the colonists. That would be the most economical way for the region.
However, the plans submitted by Colonel Borkal and the other high ranking staff officers were all about helping the natives form regular standing corps. That made the budget for Project Wildfire exceed the budget in an instant.
At the very least, the pamigar people had gained their independence and established their own nation. While the losman people were still fighting amongst themselves for power, they were at least irreconcilable enemies with the Lesnian colonists.
However, the region would have to ensure the pamigar republic's existence, as it would become a model for the natives of the other colonies to emulate.
Less than two days after the meeting, Beechlin left Lanu. He wanted to personally inspect the frontlines on the west coast and observe the strength of the pamigars.
He would only return after the first and second folk of Monolith arrived at the region to reorganize and rebuild Monolith's army.
Claude, on the other hand, had to stay in HQ to attend to official matters and would only head to the kingdom in spring.
In Claude's hands was the financial report of the region for the past year. The red words on the report stated the amount spent on Operation Wildfire: 12.83 million crowns. That included the third batch of military aid that the region had just given to the pamigar republic, which was worth close to three million crowns.
Fortunately, the pamigar people didn't have to pay for their pensions. Otherwise, the 170,000 casualties would've emptied the region's coffers.
The Minsheng Bank still had close to ten million crowns in reserve funds. The amount allocated by the parliament for the next year was more than enough. Coupled with the reduction in the number of troops, they would be able to save hundreds of thousands of crowns on the soldiers' salaries and benefits.
However, they didn't know how much more they would have to pay for Operation Wildfire next year. Even though the aid given to the natives was considered a loan, it didn't seem like it would be repaid in the next few years.
Also, even though the region's income was increasing every year, the parliament wouldn't be able to afford it if they asked for special aid next year.
Two years ago, the Dominion Parliament forked out 30 million crowns in cash from His Majesty in exchange for the Great Plains of Canas as a hereditary territory for all nobles in the Dominion. In addition, the Dominion Parliament still owed the region 15 million crowns for weapons and ships.
Speaking of which, the region earned more than eight million crowns from the arms trade with the kingdom. However, they didn't see any cash.
The 400,000 new rifles, 30 million rounds of ammunition, and 16 ironclads were used to pay for the promotion fee and land selection fee of 24 million crowns. It was a profit, but the kingdom didn't have to pay a single crown for it.
The parliament wrote an IOU of 15,000,000 crowns to the military headquarters and allocated another 2,000,000 crowns to the four shipyards for the reconstruction of the ironclad warships.
As for the 16 new ironclads to replace the 16 old warships that were to be handed over to the kingdom's navy, the five million crowns were paid in advance by the autonomous region.
The region wouldn't be able to get the parliament to increase the special military expenditure for the next few years because the parliament didn't have the money.
Most of the income would be used to develop the northern bay. It would take another two to three years for the region to break even. Currently, the region still needed the region's help to unify its development.
"Lord Marshal, the envoy of the Fochs Islands United Kingdom requests a meeting with you," the new adjutant, Fachselin, reported.
"He hasn't left yet?"
Claude thought for a moment and said, "Invite him in. Tell him I'll only give him ten minutes."
The envoy of the Fochs Islands United Kingdom arrived in Lanu half a month ago. His purpose was to ask for the return of Cape Loducus Colony from the region.
But interestingly, the envoy also wanted to get something for nothing. He asked the region to return Cape Loducus Colony to the Fochs Islands United Kingdom without paying a single penny.
Unfortunately, he didn't achieve his goal. Neither the parliament members nor the high-ranking military officers of the autonomous region would agree to his unreasonable request.
Claude had met with the envoy before and gave him the final request of the autonomous region regarding the Cape Loducus Colony.
The Fochs Islands United Kingdom had to pay a ransom of two million crowns and the region would return Cape Loducus Colony to the Fochs Islands United Kingdom.
In addition, there was another condition. The Dominion Dominion requested that troops be stationed in the Cape Loducus Colony to guard against the threat posed by the Lusman territory to the Dominion Dominion.
Two million crowns was already Claude's most favorable price. As for stationing troops, that was unavoidable.
As Claude said to the envoy last time, the Cape Loducus Colony was of little value to the Fochs Islands United Kingdom, but it was a strategic location for the Rocky Mountains region of the Dominion.
If the enemy occupied Cape Loducus Colony, they could attack Loducus Mountain from the east and the north.
In order to prevent heavy losses from the enemy's ambush like the two Shiksan folk, the region had to station troops in Cape Loducus Colony.
Of course, the garrison was also beneficial to the colony. At the very least, the citizens of Bay Loducus wouldn't have their belongings robbed dry by the hateful Shiksan mercenaries. Even now, they still had to rely on 3rd Monolith to provide them with free food and water to sustain themselves.
The region's request was simple. A ransom of two million crowns would be enough to hand over the colony to the Fochs Islands United Kingdom.
Then there was the garrison. In order to protect the Cape Loducus Colony, the Fochs Islands United Kingdom was required to pay a small symbolic protection fee every year. It wasn't much, just 50,000 gold crowns. The fee was very small, only enough to pay for the welfare of the garrison.
By the way, there was one more thing. The 5,000 or so residents of Cape Loducus Bay had been freeloading with the 3rd Monolith Division. The Fochs Islands United Kingdom should pay the 3rd Monolith Division a sum of money to thank them for rescuing them and providing for them until now.
That sum should be around 500,000 crowns. After all, Monolith 3rd Folk had fought the two Shiksan folk in order to reclaim Cape Loducus and lost close to ten thousand soldiers.
Claude's request to the Fochs envoy was very reasonable and could even be said to be giving him a lot of face.
However, the envoy still hemmed and hawed and refused to agree.
Back then, Shiks had spent five million gold keptons to rent Cape Loducus Colony for five years. Asking for a ransom of two million crowns wasn't unreasonable at all.
The envoy said that he couldn't make the decision himself and would have to send a letter to the kingdom for the king and the five dukes to decide.
Five days later, General Iquique, the commander of the Third Monolith Division stationed in the Cape Loducus Colony, sent a message to Iquique, saying that a sailing warship squadron of the Fox Islands United Kingdom had entered the Cape Loducus Colony and dropped anchor. The letter said that a feast would be held on the deck of the fleet and the residents of the city to comfort the more than 5,000 immigrants of the United Kingdom who had been plundered.
Of course, General Iquique agreed. This was humanitarianism and human nature.
That night, the bay was very lively. The forty or so sailing warships were brightly lit and people were singing and dancing. It only quietened down after midnight.
It was only at dawn the next day that the sentries of the Monolith's 3rd Division discovered that the 40 or so sailing warships had already disappeared along with the five thousand residents. Only a few dozen Nikancha servants were left on the beach ….
It was obvious that Fochs Islands United Kingdom had given up on Cape Loducus. They didn't even want to pay for the five thousand citizens to be rescued and fed. Instead, they used a dirty trick to take them away.
That wasn't out of Claude's expectations. Cape Loducus brought less than twenty thousand crowns to Fochs Islands United Kingdom every year. It didn't have any special products or resources and wasn't fully developed either. It wasn't a big deal to lose it.
Shiks was a rich man back then. They rented Cape Loducus to continue their war against the region and spent five million gold keptons for five years of rent, or 2.5 million crowns. Fochs Islands United Kingdom made a huge profit.
It was said that Fochs Islands United Kingdom wanted to sell Cape Loducus to Shiks and offered an astronomical price of 20 million gold keptons.
However, even though Majid III was a prodigal, he couldn't bear to spend that much money. He chose to rent it for five years at a cost of a million gold keptons.
In the end, Shiks suffered a crushing defeat. Eleven standing corps were wiped out and the colony war was a complete failure. Even the last two years of the colony's lease were occupied by the region's military. Shiks became the laughing stock of the west coast.
Now, the autonomous military zone was demanding a ransom of two million gold crowns, fifty thousand crowns a year for garrison protection, and five hundred thousand crowns for the soldiers of the Monolith Division for saving five thousand residents. Although it was reasonable, it was unacceptable to the Fochs Islands United Kingdom. They might as well give up on the colony.
Claude didn't think that the envoy of Fochs would actually remain in the region until now. He thought that the envoy would have left after the fleet secretly took the five thousand citizens away.
Not to mention, he didn't even pay them for their rescue and took them away without saying a word. How could he still have the face to request a meeting with him?
Soon, the envoy appeared in Claude's office once more. Claude didn't give him a pleasant look and kept his face dark.
The emissary, on the other hand, bowed to Claude with a calm demeanor, not a single hair out of place on his body.
"What a clever move. You took away five thousand of your own citizens just like that. Looks like you don't want to pay your savior a single crown, do you?" Claude said coldly.
The envoy bowed slightly. "Esteemed Lord Marshal, it's not that we don't want to pay you. We just can't afford it.
In recent years, we've been plagued by natural and man-made disasters. Our people are in dire straits and our economy is in dire straits. We really can't afford to pay you, so we had no choice but to leave. "
Claude pouted. What nonsense. He hadn't heard about the Fochian Islands suffering any disasters in the past few years. Last year's report on the eight colonies in the south of Freia stated that the Fochian Islands had a great harvest of potatoes and the citizens were celebrating. "So, you don't want Cape Loducus anymore?"
"That's right. After much thought, the only way to repay our citizens is to transfer the colony to your army." The envoy took out a few documents from his bag and handed them to Claude.
Claude took it and saw that it was a document regarding the transfer of Cape Loducus Colony. It stated that the Fochian Kingdom was willing to hand over the Cape Loducus Colony on the western coast of Nubissia to the Overseas Dominion as thanks for saving the Dominion's citizens.
The document was signed in the name of the king of the Fochian Islands and stamped with the kingdom's seal.
Upon closer inspection, one could tell that the king's signature and seal had been stamped on the document beforehand. The handwriting on the document was written afterwards.
Claude smiled and tossed the document on the table. "The region doesn't need this, Mister Envoy.
Don't forget that our soldiers paid the price of ten thousand casualties to take Cape Loducus from the hands of the Shiksan mercenaries and save your citizens. We're not handing over the colony to you.
Compared to these documents, I'd much rather you pay us a ransom and protection fee. The region doesn't care about such a small piece of land. "
Claude's reaction surprised the envoy. He hurriedly said, "Esteemed Lord Marshal, these documents are only a show of our kingdom's sincerity.
I'm here on behalf of our kingdom to discuss military cooperation with your army. We hope to import the technology you use to build ironclads. "