Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 569 Army and Finance ([-])

"The rising sun, the crowing of the cock and the barking of the dog, the church and the village, and the peaceful nostalgia."

Anda Shiwu breathed a sigh of relief, put the brush on the pen holder, and washed his hands in the wooden basin brought by the orderly.After washing, I carefully looked at the calligraphy I just finished, and I was quite satisfied.I have been fighting abroad for a long time, but it seems that my calligraphy hobby has not regressed.

"What a peaceful country! Mr. Anda, I don't want to rest in the small town of Santa Fe for such a long time, but I can't think of it anymore." A slightly tired hoarse voice sounded behind him.

Anda Fifteen suddenly turned around, and it turned out to be the army captain Jiang Zhiqing who was going to the local military headquarters to accept the hearing.Jiang Zhiqing is a veteran army captain, and his promotion rank is earlier than that of Anda Fifteen. He is a senior in the army, so Anda Fifteen immediately stood with his legs together and saluted.

Jiang Zhiqing raised his hand in return, and then Shi Shiran sat on the seat of Anda Fifteen, unbuttoned a discipline button on his chest, and said casually: "Seeing that it's the end of summer, and the weather is still so hot, it must be 26 degrees." Come on. Hey, riding a horse stinks in sweat."

Anda fifteen's orderly brought a pot of yerba mate tea winkingly, and poured a cup for the two of them.Jiang Zhiqing took two sips lightly, then put down the teacup, and said with some intoxication: "Over the years, I really like this yerba mate tea. It refreshes the mind, refreshes the brain, and lowers blood lipids. It is rich in nutrients and It can prevent scurvy and diabetes. Especially the former one. No wonder the Navy listed this substance as one of the necessary military supplies. People who have been floating at sea all year round cannot afford expensive authentic tea, so they can only drink Drink yerba mate to supplement your vitamins."

"If Vice Captain Jiang likes it, why don't you go to the military station to get a few boxes? I have a large batch of yerba mate tea delivered here recently. Hey, it was intercepted from the navy." Anda Shiwu took out a pen and paper, ready to sign it documents.He is the company commander of the 6th Company of the Army, and also the person in charge of the Santa Fe Depot. The supplies hoarded in the city are piled up like a mountain.Isn't it just some tea? The warriors of the Republic fought their lives and died on the front line. Drinking some tea is nothing!

"Forget it." Jiang Zhiqing waved his hand and said with a light smile, "Have you forgotten where I came from? I have been stationed in Corrientes with Captain Chang for more than two months. There are large wild tea gardens there. Drink it casually during the day, the fragrance is much better than those old goods in the warehouse of the military depot. Haha, don't be depressed, there will be a large amount of supplies sent by Corrientes soon, I will send you a few boxes, all of which are on the market Waiting for the goods."

"Thank you for the kindness of Vice Captain Jiang, but the staff department will not be respectful." Anda Shiwu responded happily, then looked at a pendulum clock in the room, and exclaimed as if he had just discovered it: "It turns out that it is almost It's twelve o'clock, and it's almost time for lunch. Deputy detachment leader, how about having lunch in our department today? I heard that when the south gate of Putrajaya was captured that day, deputy detachment leader Jiang personally commanded the artillery to destroy two enemy artillery pieces in one fell swoop, making a remarkable contribution , I will be promoted to the rank of major soon, which really fascinates us. Now all the officers and men want to see you, please be sure to honor me."

"Alright, I also want to meet the brothers from the Army's 6th Company." Jiang Zhiqing first pretended to be reserved and pondered for a while, and then said happily.

Lunch is placed in the company headquarters of Anda XV, which is also the most complete preserved building in the city - Santa Fe Catholic Church.The church is said to be made of large wood cut from the Corrientes area. The house is tall and solemn, and the icon is lifelike, but there is no priest or believer here. There are only knives here. Some of the foreign soldiers holding guns are just the pride and frivolity of the victors, and some are just the complacency of the conquerors - this church has been requisitioned!

The orderlies brought out a fairly sumptuous meal, most of which were beef and other cooked dishes, and occasionally some "delicacy" such as chicken and duck were quietly placed by the orderlies on the side close to Jiang Zhiqing.In addition, there are common dishes in the army such as bean sprouts, salted cod, soft fish, pickled radish, and spiced whale meat. It can be seen that this place lives in the wilderness, and the material is not very rich.

Anda Shiwu opened a few bottles of Hezhong Daqu, and while pouring Jiang Zhiqing wine, he introduced the officers present one by one.There are officers above the platoon leader of the 6th Company of the Army, two chief officers of the Luocha County Militia Brigade who stayed here, a gaucho leader who defected to the people on the east bank, a leader of the Krandi uprising army, and a Tatar mercenary. The two cavalry officers... In short, they are all officers of a certain level. Anda Shiwu introduced them to Jiang Zhiqing one by one.

Jiang Zhiqing smiled at them one by one.These people are rough people, and many of them are not even used to the etiquette of the East Bank. When some officers from the Ming Dynasty or Livonian officers who have been immersed in the East Bank Army for a long time stand up and toast Jiang Zhiqing, these people Some of the guys inside were still sitting there carelessly.Jiang Zhiqing didn't take it seriously, and drank wine with them one by one, extremely generous.

Adachi was born as a [-]th field samurai, and Japanese food and beverages have always been famous for their exquisiteness-to put it bluntly, the quantity is not enough. Right now, he drank a few sips of Kawaka Daqu, and immediately felt a little tipsy.He knew he couldn't drink anymore, so he ate a few mouthfuls of food to suppress the alcohol, and then asked the deputy detachment Jiang Zhiqing through the alcohol: "Your Excellency, deputy detachment leader, even in Santa Fe, I heard that the financial situation of the middle school is not good. Jia, the military intends to launch an autumn campaign in La Plata, trying to quickly end the long-awaited war here and force the Spaniards to sue for peace. The staff thinks day and night, but they don't know where the main direction of this war is? What is the target?"

"Anda-jun, you drink too much, be careful!" Jiang Zhiqing first reminded Anda fifteen lightly, then picked up a piece of his favorite cod, and then said slowly after eating: "It's okay to talk to you guys Anyway, the battle plan will be delivered here today and tomorrow. The main attack direction of the autumn campaign is in the north, and the goal of the campaign is to conquer Asunción and cut off the passage from Charcas to Asunción."

Seeing the somewhat disappointed expressions of the officers present, Jiang Zhiqing smiled lightly.The autumn campaign launched in the north this time, the goal of the campaign is to conquer Asuncion, but it is nonsense to say that it cuts off the passage from Charcas to Asuncion.From Chalkas to Paraguay, there are only some forest trails that can pass through, and many places can only be passed by one person and one horse. The materials and artillery needed for the army to fight are simply impossible to go from here, it is too difficult!Therefore, the people on the east coast are not worried at all that the Spaniards will launch a large-scale offensive from here.The only goal and motivation for conquering Asunción on the east coast was, of course, to plunder this well-known and wealthy city in the La Plata region, so as to supplement the country's dwindling finances, and at the same time make some small fortunes for the army brothers who participated in the war.

The officers present were disappointed, which was naturally expected by Jiang Zhiqing, because it meant that they had no chance to make a fortune by plundering.Except for the 6th Company of the Army, the military discipline of the troops in Santa Fe is very bad.Especially those Tatar mercenaries and members of the Rocha County Militia Brigade, there were many incidents of adultery with Spanish women, and the gendarmerie received complaints like a snowflake.Jiang Zhiqing, who was in charge of military discipline, didn't care much about these things. Except for punishing a few militiamen from Qingzhou bandits who made too much trouble, and compensating the raped Spanish mayor's daughter's family with 20 yuan in East Bank silver dollars, most of the criminals He turned a blind eye to those who committed crimes and let them go.The brothers were born to risk their lives and never avoided the front. If they were punished for some trivial matter now, it would chill the enthusiasm of the soldiers, it would be wrong!

"After the main force of the detachment went north to attack Asunción..." Jiang Zhiqing paused at this point, glanced around, and when he saw that everyone had calmed down and looked at him, he said: "A garrison command has been established in Santa Fe City. Captain Anda, the commander of the 6th Company of the Army, served as the commander. The duty of the headquarters was to clear up the remaining Spanish forces nearby, clear up the law and order, and make every effort to ensure the smooth flow of the logistics transportation channel (Parana River) of the main detachment. Recently, some troops from Córdoba The Spanish soldiers who came sneaked into Asuncion, which made the captain of the detachment very angry. This time, the city of Santa Fe should focus on cavalry, expand the patrol area, and search for any attack that may be encountered on the grassland west of Santa Fe. Spanish soldiers or train troops to cut off the supplies of the enemy in Asunción."

In the city of Santa Fe, there are currently more than 4 soldiers from the 400th Company of the East Coast Army Cavalry, more than 500 soldiers from the Gaucho Volunteer Army, and more than 1300 soldiers from the Tatar Cavalry.With more than 1000 people dispatched to search and patrol, it must be possible to greatly reduce the number of Spanish convoys that traveled long distances from Cordoba to Asunción to support troops and supplies.

In addition, there are more than 6 infantry soldiers in the city of Santa Fe, including the 1400th Company of the Army, the Rocha Militia Brigade, and the Krandi Volunteer Army.Among them, the combat effectiveness of the Kelandi is quite suspicious, and they can only be used as helpers who wave the flag and shout, but as cheap cannon fodder without salary, they are still competent for guarding warehouses and cleaning the battlefield.

"During this process, anyone who slacks off their duties, fails to fight effectively, or neglects their duties will be shot and severely punished!" In the end, Jiang Zhiqing's face darkened: "Asunción's operations are of great importance. The combat operations of the soldiers are disturbed by any factors other than the war. And this is also what the military department and the head of the permanent detachment mean, do you understand, everyone?"

"Understood, I understand..." Everyone responded in a hurry, as if if they answered slowly, something bad would happen to them.

Seeing that everyone expressed their opinions, Jiang Zhiqing smiled slightly, and then continued to invite everyone to eat.

(End of this chapter)