HCB Chapter 486: Exercise to Action
Chapter 486: Exercise to Action
Before John met Duna, he received a confession from Wesker.
It turned out that Duna initially accumulated a huge fortune by smuggling. After Count Neumann successfully sided with Ludwig, he keenly sensed the opportunity and gave Count Neumann a large sum of money without hesitation to solve Ludwig's high tax assignment.
Moreover, he used most of the income from smuggling in exchange for the support of the Count of Norway for expanding the smuggling business. By the time the coalition forces entered the Norwegian province, Duna had already expanded his smuggling trade overseas.
Later, when Ludwig fell from power and Count Novi left his territory according to the treaty, Duna did not hesitate or feel reluctant at all and immediately changed his partners to the city council and the city defense army.
No one can resist money. As long as he can make money, he doesn't care who he cooperates with.
As a result, the gang began to engage in a series of illegal and criminal activities, starting with reselling the military equipment of the original Yoda army.
Afterwards, they were even more ruthless in trafficking people abroad. Behind every trafficked person were countless broken families and pain, and the money they earned made all the participants rich.
When John saw this, he already understood in his heart that it was obvious who the buyer was. On the continent, apart from the Principality of Is, which engaged in smuggling and colonization overseas, no other force could be so generous as to take in so much goods.
But John's doubts did not dissipate, and he carefully thought about every detail of the case.
According to the bribery money found from the car dealership president, there were thousands of gold coins. Adding on the information reported by Eugene before, Duna had to share the smuggling profits with a group of people, so it was impossible for him to save so much money.
This shows that the other party still has reservations in his confession, and there may be a larger chain of interests or crimes that have not yet been exposed hidden behind it.
"Continue the interrogation and see if the other party has anything else to confess."
After John gave the order, his brows were furrowed, and he was thinking about the subsequent response strategy.
He knew very well that this matter could not be limited to the interrogation of Duna. This was already the largest case since the founding of the People's Republic of China. If it was not handled properly, not only would the criminals go unpunished, but it would also damage the country's prestige.
He must let the residents of the entire country know that the new Holy Kingdom of Helderland will never allow any illegal and criminal acts to run rampant.
After careful consideration, John believed that the army must be dispatched to resolve the situation, but large-scale military mobilization would likely alert the criminal gangs. The criminal gangs were well-informed and once they got wind of the situation, they would likely destroy evidence, transfer assets, or do something even more crazy out of desperation.
John pondered over it, and suddenly an idea came to him. He immediately ordered:
"Tell Hawke, Charlie, and Wesker to come see me."
A week later, the residents of Helmingen heard the newsboys' cries as they took to the streets:
"The military commander announced: In order to promote the fighting spirit of the national army, a one-week nationwide military exercise will be organized!"
Upon hearing the news, residents bought newspapers from the newsboys, hoping to learn about the military exercise from the newspapers. Looking at the newspapers in their hands, the residents began to discuss enthusiastically.
In Helmingen, the pub is like a huge communication platform. The hot news about today's military exercises is like a whirlwind, quickly sweeping every corner of the city, and naturally became the focus of heated discussion among people in the pub.
At a table near the corner, several drinkers were enthusiastically discussing the hot topic of military exercises.
A drinker picked up the glass, took a sip of the wine, then frowned and said with a puzzled look on his face:
"Tell me, what's the point of this military exercise? It's not a real fight. No matter how much you practice, it won't have much effect. It's just a group of people wielding weapons. What real skills can they develop?"
His voice was not prominent in this noisy pub, but it was enough to attract the attention of people around him.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, he was immediately refuted by a drinker.
The drunkard wrinkled his nose, looked at him with disdain, and said:
"I think your view is wrong. Today's army is not a place where anyone can just pick up a weapon and practice casually and then go to the battlefield. Take weapon maintenance for example. A sharp weapon is the life guarantee of a soldier on the battlefield. If you don't pay attention to maintenance during normal times, when the real battle comes, the sword will rust and the artillery will explode. What's the point of fighting? It's like chopping wood with a blunt axe. How can you expect to chop quickly and well?"
As he spoke, he took a sip of wine, paused for a moment, and continued:
"On a larger scale, building a temporary camp also requires long-term training. Imagine that when an army marches to an unfamiliar land, there may be dangers everywhere and the enemy may appear at any time. At this time, the soldiers must quickly and methodically build the camp, set up fortifications, and ensure the safety of the camp. This is not a simple matter of setting up tents. Many factors must be considered, such as terrain, wind direction, and water sources. If you don't undergo long-term training, you will definitely be in a mess when it comes to actual operation, which will give the enemy an opportunity to take advantage."
Many drinkers nodded in agreement with his words. A farmer in coarse cloth also said:
"Yes, the country is supported by the army. If the army has not undergone rigorous training, once a war breaks out, our lives will be difficult. Therefore, I think it is very necessary for the country to organize such military exercises, which is not only good for the army, but also for our people."
In various places, legions and knight orders received military exercise missions and immediately dispatched their respective teams to advance towards the designated targets.
For a time, the roads leading to various provinces were filled with marching troops.
Hawke even went directly to the military fortress scheduled for the exercise and inspected the army on behalf of the king.
The province of Norwegian felt the impact of the military exercise more directly, because one of the locations of the military exercise was in the southern part of the province. Even citizens living in the city of Norwegian could vaguely hear the sound of artillery in the distance.
However, since there had been prior notice, no one cared, and the artillery drill was also chosen to be held at noon, so there was no disturbance to the public.
Soon, with the arrival of the seventh day of the military exercise, troops from all over the country began to return to their respective provinces.
By night, only three thousand-man teams from the Central Bank Province, Forest Province, and Nilan Province remained in the entire camp.
“Beep…beep, beep, beep, beep!”
Suddenly, a loud assembly horn sounded throughout the camp.
The soldiers who heard the horn in their sleep immediately got up from their beds, quickly put on their armor, picked up their weapons and rushed out of the tent.
The moonlight shone on the camp, illuminating the entire camp and making the armor on the soldiers reflect the light.
Hawke stood at the gate of the camp, looking at the three teams of a thousand men lined up in front of him.
"Report to the commander-in-chief, the 1,000-man team from the Central Bank Province participating in the military exercise is ready!"
"The thousand-man team from the Forest Province participating in the military exercise is ready!"
"The thousand-man team from Nilan Province participating in the military exercise is ready!"
The voices of the three centurions echoed in the night sky.
"The whole army obeys the order!"
Hawke shouted loudly with a megaphone:
"Now issue the highest instructions from His Majesty John of the Holy Kingdom of Helderland. The troops participating in the military exercise in the Central Province, Forest Province, and Niland Province will be put into combat mode. Cooperate with the intelligence department and the garrison stationed in the Norwegian Province to wipe out the traitorous armed organization entrenched in Norwegian City in one fell swoop!"