When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

Chapter 727: Inspecting the Bear Eater

"loyalty!"

On both sides of the red carpet, military boots with copper spurs came together with a bang.

The crossed halberds drew silver arcs in the air, and the iron armor rattled as it retracted, startling the crows that were napping on the battlements.

Meliati, wearing a black silk cloak with a red interior, jumped off the horse and a rare smile appeared on her face.

She was wearing a navy blue knee-length slim jacket, with her long white hair casually tied up, revealing her white neck.

As time went by, Meliati became less and less bothered about showing her face.

Looking at the two rows of dozens of soldiers in neatly dressed armor and uniforms, Meliati smiled with satisfaction.

But when she saw the city guard in a rabbit fur coat, walking towards her quickly and fawningly, the sincere smile on her face quickly turned into a fake smile.

The officer guarding the city felt as if a cold wind had blown over him, and his heart inexplicably tightened.

"Thank you for your hard work, Marcator's city defender." Meliati extended the iron fist of her left hand.

And Marcato immediately leaned over and kissed the knuckle of the middle finger of the iron fist: "How can I dare to call it hard work in front of you? Why don't we go into the castle first and have a bite of lunch?"

“No need.” The right hand holding the whip waved, and the eyes behind the iron mask of Meliati flickered. “I’ll go to the barracks to check on the other soldiers first.”

"Okay, okay."

Under the guidance of the city guard officer, Meliati first inspected the barracks and even sat on the dirty bunk bed to talk to the soldiers.

She then gave instructions to replace the straw mat bed with a flue-heated kang, which she must see when she came to inspect next time.

Then, His Royal Highness the Despot went to each sentry post and delivered the best hams, sausages and blankets, which moved the low-ranking soldiers to tears.

While visiting the outpost, Meliati also took the opportunity to take a look around the surrounding terrain and even took a walk around the outskirts of Feldheim Town.

This was the trick the Archduchess had learned from Horn. It didn't make sense that Horn was the only one who could use these cheap tricks.

This trick is not only used by Meliati, but now even His Royal Highness King Charles VIII of France will visit the military camps and merchants' homes from time to time.

The lunch that was supposed to be served was heated up again and again, and by the time Meliati returned it was in time for dinner.

The hungry city guards and others were starving to the point of having green eyes, but Meliati, on the other hand, was still full of energy.

After a light meal at Bear Gnaw Castle with the main officers of all ranks, the Grand Duchess stayed behind to play a few games of cards.

Even though Meliati is a woman, she is just as good as a man when it comes to banging the table and smashing the cards.

When she got angry, she would point at the officer's nose and yell at him, but the more she did that, the more popular she became with the officers.

Those officers who were scolded were proud to show off to other officers: "I was called a lowly dog ​​by the tyrannical prince!"

The game of cards lasted until the moon was at its highest point in the sky. Meliati pretended to be sleepy, yawned, and left.

But just as she returned to the big heated bed that the city guard had vacated for her, Lannes came back quietly.

"How is it?" Meliati looked at Lannes who pushed the door open and said, "I held them back for the entire day and most of the night. If you didn't find out anything, you know the consequences."

Lannes stood at attention and said, "Your Highness, I have found out that there is nothing wrong with the city guard, he just neglected his duty.

He was drunk every day and only took care of training matters, leaving the rest to the deputy minister and the quartermaster.

There were rumors among the army that the quartermaster general and the deputy chief were reselling supplies because their food was getting worse, but I could find no evidence of it.

The military chaplains and military judges of the Juano sect were honest and did not do anything out of line, but they often went to Feldheim to drink together during work hours. Most soldiers slept during the chaplains' literacy and prayer meetings, and the military judges and clerks would turn a blind eye to some disciplinary issues.

"Where are the battle reports of those battles?"

“It is true, these officers promoted from the Black Caps and your Foot Knights are quite fair and rigorous in military exploits and warfare.

These are what the border soldiers hope for. If it is not fair, these soldiers will really rebel. "

Melia nodded. This was consistent with the results she obtained from her words and eavesdropping at the card table.

"What about the soldiers, how are they doing?"

"Generally speaking, he's fine. He's quite dedicated to training and fighting, but as for daily work and the like..." Lannes stopped talking here.

But Meliati knew what he was going to say in the second half, which was simply that he was going to check it out so it would be better, and the previous part was just a bluff.

The Grand Duchess had her own channels, and she shared some of the resources of the Holy League Cheka, because Carrie’s position during the Gulag period was “Chief of the Cheka.”

According to the intelligence gathered by the Cheka, the soldiers were idle in their daily work and were allowed to pass without weapons.

Junior officers robbed vendors under the pretext of confiscating contraband items, and had great discretion to decide whether something was prohibited or not.

Senior officers beat and enslaved soldiers at will, and even sent garrison soldiers to the town to open shops and do business.

But if you really say they are not good enough, the training results are good. They have repelled several attacks from the Stone Plains army and captured many mercenaries and spies who tried to sneak in.

Sometimes he is capable and sometimes he is incompetent, which is really confusing.

Stroking the iron fist, Meliati closed her eyes slightly, but was thinking in her heart.

It's not that she can't understand that if the inspection is too careful, it will inevitably lead to low customs efficiency and blocked trade routes, and her superiors will reprimand her.

And if you really look carefully, there is no end to it. No matter how careful you are, there will always be fish that slip through the net.

If the inspection is not thorough, it may lead to the infiltration of spies and the superiors will also reprimand them.

In that case, why not just take a one-size-fits-all approach and not check carefully? This will save you some effort.

Xiongken Fort is isolated on the border of Qianhe Valley, and even an express horse would take three to five days to deliver urgent news.

If it weren't for military judges and chaplains, rules and regulations would be pure bullshit to the border troops.

To be precise, this situation is a common occurrence in this era.

In Langsand County, relying on economic dividends and political championships, it is able to exercise relatively efficient and responsible border functions.

But if you think that the entire Qianhe Valley border can achieve this level, then that is wishful thinking.

After all, it has only been three years since the uprising and the founding of the Thousand River Valley. It is almost impossible to leap from an inefficient and corrupt makeshift team of the Middle Ages to a reliable government.

What Horn and Meliati have been doing is actually promoting bureaucrats to replace the rule of the feudal nobles.

It has only reduced legal exploitation institutionally. Relying solely on the moral level of this group of bureaucrats is worse than hoping that the Holy Father can really come down to earth.

From Horn's own point of view, let alone the Advisory Council and the Autocratic Cabinet, even the Holy League has a makeshift team.

The efficiency of the Holy See government is based partly on its system and partly on the personal abilities of the Gulag's founding fathers.

Thinking of this, Meliati couldn't help but clench her fists.

(End of this chapter)