open sea

Chapter 1183 Hunger
Pricing is wishful thinking. Weapons have always had a price but no market in the war years.

That's what Rochefort City Garrison Captain Baudouin thought.

They were all starving to death. Since he was stationed in Rochefort, he basically bought all the food that could be bought in two months.

Since they came from the seaports near the lowland countries in the north, Boduan's brigade rarely owed military salaries and was richer than other people, so life was easy at the beginning of the garrison, but no one could stand it after a long time. The farmland was plundered by the Ming army, and the price of food in the city soared, driving all other supplies to double, and they could no longer afford food.

There is no problem with the logistics. The last batch of supplies for the army was delivered four months ago and will be supplied until next spring. However, due to the famine in the city, their army rations were embezzled by the church and distributed to the residents. Later, not only the residents had no food to eat, but the army also lacked. supply.

All the birds that flew over Rochefort were killed.

A large number of residents fled to the north, and those who remained survived according to their own abilities. The troops with lax military discipline were divided into small groups and led by their respective captains to attack residential houses and plunder churches. Being repelled, sometimes some valuables can be robbed, but there is no food.

No one has food, and money becomes useless.

The flag officer of Boduan was calling him, and several soldiers brought the pottery soup pot off the fire with burlap. A strange fragrance wafted from the hot pot, and there were a few rare green leaves in winter, and more It was yellow and dry leaves, and a few boiled bugs that couldn't be named.

The flag officer took a bowl and put it in front of Boduan. The dizziness and abdominal cramps caused by hunger made this strange bowl of soup very tempting. Although the taste of the entrance was really terrible, it could at least temporarily fill his stomach .

He had to think of a way, otherwise his team would lose their minds like those people.

Just a few days ago, a squad leader took some soldiers out of the city and never came back. Rumors about him spread in the city. Some people said that the squad leader went to join his subordinates in Bordeaux to live a life full of food; Some people said that he fled north to the earl's territory as a mercenary; some nobles said that he was dead, not far from the city, and was attacked by the Ming army.

Boduan thinks the first theory is very possible. The captain surrendered to the Ming army. During this difficult time, the captain has been doing well because he has a soldier who is a local and married his daughter to a Bordeaux soldier. The soldiers of the Ming Army seemed to come from 'Qianqian' or somewhere else, and within a few days they were able to dig some dried meat in the southern woods, and everyone who knew about it was very envious.

But what one person eats occasionally as a snack can’t support the whole squad. Their chief executed the soldier after knowing this. Boduan believed that the execution was likely to make the entire squad defect and surrender to the Ming army. reason.

"We have to think of something. We have to leave the city. I heard that the Ming army gave some land to their foreign people on the north bank..."

Before Boduan finished speaking, the starving flag officer swallowed his saliva and said weakly: "I know, a musketeer from the Jacques team saw it from a distance when they were patrolling. They are repairing the castle. See The soldiers did not attack immediately, but sent word that they were buying muskets and armor and exchanging them for flour;

"The captain wants to take us to surrender?" the flag officer said, looking at the captain Bo Du'an and licking his lips, his face was full of expectation and worry, he shook his head slowly and said: "We should survive this winter. It's hard to go home alive, maybe after the winter, I can be transferred to another place, if I want to surrender, maybe...won't I surrender?"

For some reason, Boduan felt that the flag bearer and the soldiers were a little disappointed when they heard that they were not going to surrender.

He said to the flag-bearer: "You are the flag-bearer. During the flag-giving ceremony, you swore to protect the flag with your life."

"I know, don't worry Captain, I can take the flag and leave."

Bo Duan didn't speak, and looked at the flag officer for a while, then looked around at the soldiers and said: "Those armed peasants have food, and their equipment is not good. We are going to rob them with stone axes and wooden sticks. If everything All right, the team can get enough supplies for this winter."

No one answered.

The atmosphere was very awkward at one time.

After a long time, the soldiers looked at me and I looked at you, and finally pushed out the flag bearer: "Captain, we lost 27 people in the battle three months ago. The battle was very heroic. The musketeers fired all the ammunition. Then joined the infantry with the short sword, and no one fled."

"However, in the ensuing retreat, 16 people froze to death, were seriously injured and died, and 13 people escaped and disappeared. Now there are only 94 people with sound limbs. Half of these 94 people can only drink hot dry leaf soup a day. We have no artillery, no Gunpowder and crossbow bolts are only sharpened sticks, and people are too hungry to walk.”

"It's sixty miles away from the nearest armed peasant stronghold. It's cold outside the house. Maybe you can find some food on the way, but I'm not sure how many people will be left there, and whether they can fight."

"But there is food there." Boduan sighed, looking at the dried leaf soup in the bowl, "if this continues, the bugs and dead leaves will be eaten up, as long as we can get there, Grain can be grabbed, we still have a lot of muskets, it's just some peasants with sticks."

"They don't know we don't have gunpowder."

"As long as you are scared, you will obediently hand over the food." Boduan also felt that speaking was very laborious, so he stood up and comforted him: "I know that marching is very tiring, but you still have to put on your armor and take it well. property, we will occupy it until we get through the winter, we can't stay here any longer."

What Boduan didn't say was that many people died in the city due to the robbing of hungry soldiers and residents. He was worried that there would be a plague if this continued, and he was also worried that it would lead to even greater chaos.

The nobles and mercenary leaders have found it difficult to restrain the troops under the hunger, and each captain is trying to find a way for the soldiers under his command to survive.

Bodu'an thought that he had chosen a relatively easy path, using professional soldiers to deal with poorly armed peasants, and still had the advantage of troops—he really couldn't understand why Chen Jiujing would make such a foolish move.

It’s not his fault, it can only be blamed for the fact that the Ming immigration group’s actions in the New World were too small, and the Spaniards were unwilling to bring up the shame again after returning home. People kept silent about what happened on the border of the New World, so it hasn’t spread to France yet.

As the pioneers of a new land, they must rely on their reliance when they dare to occupy the land on the battlefield. For example, the current destination of Boduan's trip, the owner of the manor closest to them is named Ding Hai. The night when the frontier army is disbanded will not be accepted.

(End of this chapter)