Alien Arms Empire.

Chapter 1696 1697 If Your Majesty Asks

The most essential parts include aircraft manufacturing, automobile and tank manufacturing, etc. Most of these factories were destroyed in bombings, a few were relocated away, and the rest were just ruins.

Under such circumstances, it is impossible for the dwarves to have much industry that can operate normally, and the little that is left can only be maintained by relying on the raw materials and electricity provided by their allies in the south.

This is no joke. The dwarves are having a hard time producing bullets on their own now, and they can only rely on the elves for assistance with artillery shells and the like. Many of the weapons of the troops near Ironforge are in a state of being lost if one is broken.

Without the support of modern industry, thermal weapons are non-renewable resources. Now the dwarf commanders finally understand the meaning of this sentence.

The most supplies the dwarves received were the mass-produced Mauser rifles and 7.92mm rifle bullets from the elves. However, with hundreds of thousands of troops constantly consuming supplies, these rifles and bullets that came from afar were simply a drop in the bucket.

A month ago, the dwarf soldiers looked down on the Mauser rifles for which they could not easily get bullets. Now, they had no choice but to throw away the Mosin-Nagant rifles for which they could not find ammunition.

Another problem that caused the Dwarf senior commanders to collapse was that their stocks of 152mm caliber howitzer shells were dwindling rapidly, while the Elven 150mm caliber guns and corresponding shells to replace these guns were pitifully scarce.

A large number of valuable artillery pieces became scrap metal due to lack of ammunition, and the number of artillery pieces and shells available to replenish them were pitifully small, which had seriously affected the war situation.

It is conceivable that the dwarves were struggling to even obtain the ammunition and supplies to support their battles, let alone something like cotton-padded clothes that seemed less important.

Anyway, in the eyes of the officers, the dwarf troops fighting at their doorstep have a way to solve such small difficulties as surviving the winter: if they really can't, they can just look for civilians' winter clothes in the ruins, it's not like they can't find them.

The prime minister did not think so. He was very sensitive about this issue: "I have asked the finance minister and other ministers... We do not have enough cotton clothes to survive the winter. The troops can only hope to hide in the city to fight the severe cold."

In fact, the Prime Minister had guessed from the attitudes of the top military officers and reports from some of his subordinates that the situation of the dwarf troops robbing civilians on the front line was very serious.

This is overdrawing the life of the empire and destroying the foundation of the empire. He really doesn't want this to happen, because after the war, these actions will eventually be settled.

The turmoil will continue, and the legitimacy of the Ice Empire will be questioned. All the messes must be cleaned up, and perhaps the Ice Empire will not recover for a hundred years.

Of course, the prerequisite is that there is a country called the Ice Empire.

Despite this, the prime minister still expressed his concerns: "But the problem now is that the city has no way to guarantee heating, the factories have been completely paralyzed, and the boilers can no longer operate. In this case, how much support can the city provide to the troops to survive the winter?"

Sure enough, Larbu gave the solution that the army had come up with many times! The so-called solution that made people shudder: "Our soldiers can find fuel and food by themselves..."

Of course, the troops could find things to use for the winter in the city of Ironforge. They could burn the unclaimed furniture in the collapsed buildings as firewood, or they could pick up the cotton clothes next to the bodies of civilians and put them on.

And then what? What if that wasn't enough? They would break into civilians' homes, burn their belongings, rob their food, and even take away all their clothes... How would those civilians who had lost everything survive the winter? The army would not consider such a problem. But as the chancellor of the empire, he could not ignore such a thing anyway.

So, the chancellor stared at Larb and continued to ask: "I believe what you said, and then what? They retreated all the way here from the north. I don't know how much food they have found by themselves, but you let them find food to cook and eat in Ironforge... and then what?"

"Then how can we face the civilians of Ironforge? Don't we want this land after the war?" He continued to ask without waiting for Larb to answer.

Larbu was silent for a few seconds before he spoke in a dry voice, "As long as we can still control Ironforge, it doesn't matter what the civilians think! The most important thing now is to win this war! Prime Minister."

"Maybe you are right, so I didn't stop you, or what you did. It doesn't matter, things have come to this point, and we have to try whatever method we can. But I hope we won't regret our choice today." After a few seconds of silence, the prime minister spoke.

He hoped that he would not regret agreeing to this choice, and that the elves would not regret withdrawing the planes from the Ice Empire. He also hoped that the Ice Empire could survive this damn winter.

The water cup on the table suddenly shook, and ripples appeared in the boiling water inside. Both of them felt the vibration and looked up at the light bulb hanging above their heads at the same time.

Sure enough, the incandescent bulb was shaking, and the Tang army really started to bombard Ironforge. I don't know where the opponent's target is, but it is obvious that the Tang people are starting to get serious this time.

The tenacious resistance of the dwarves also aroused the anger of the Tang army. In order to reduce casualties, the Tang army began to use rocket launchers and heavy artillery to destroy some sturdy buildings that were not easy to capture.

The places where these shellings occurred were actually considered the core areas of the city, so in the underground bunker of the palace, one could clearly feel the ground shaking constantly under the shelling.

"How long do you think Barov can hold the train station?" The prime minister turned his eyes away from the chandelier and asked the chief of staff Larbu opposite him.

Larbu shook his head. "I'm not sure. In fact, it's a question whether the place is still in Barov's hands. Although the order to retreat and shoot has been issued long ago, the front line is still retreating... We can't capture everyone and kill them, right?"

"That is to say, the Tang army is less than 10 kilometers away from here?" The prime minister continued to ask questions.

"That's about right, Prime Minister." After answering this question, Larbu stood up and saluted: "I'll go back first... I think some less important documents can be burned."

"I understand." The prime minister stood up and said, "If His Majesty asks..."

"I understand, I know what to say." Larbu nodded and turned away.