All the contract girls want to marry me

Matthew felt a little uneasy.

When he set his sights on Andre, Andre was stunned for a second, and then let out a clear laugh.

"Does this require hesitation? Matthew, this is the beginning of your road to the emperor!"

"The empire suffered a disastrous defeat on the battlefield, morale collapsed, the people were panicked, and the whole country was shaken. What does the empire need most at this time?"

"Hero!" Matthew said without thinking.

At this time, no emperor, nobility, or bishop can be used. What everyone needs is a hero.

As soon as these words came out, Matthew instantly understood what Andre meant.

Difficulties aside, now is indeed the best time for him to turn the tide and become a hero to save the country.

As long as the situation of the war is reversed, he can win a sky-high reputation. If coupled with his status as the Son of the Holy Light and the Elector, great things can be achieved.

The sea was flowing, Fang showed his true colors.

If you can't stand up at this time, why should you compete with the Himilen family and the Hoffenhager family for the throne?

Matthew can do it or not, he has no choice!

Chapter 152 Laughing and Debating

Although many officials did not want Matthew to go to war personally, his decision was final.

The tone for the army's expedition has been set, and the next thing to discuss is the details.

According to Matthew's request, the 5000 people brought from the Southern Front to escort the prisoners were left behind, plus Lundebel's original [-] soldiers to form a defensive force.

The 5000 men sent by the Southern Front Army were originally only second-line troops escorting the baggage. Under the premise that the Front Army was defeated, their morale was worrying and their combat effectiveness could not be expected at all.

This kind of troops cannot even be used as cannon fodder. If they collapse on the battlefield, they will bring down the entire army, so naturally he will not use this army that may collapse at any time.

He took all the members of the newly formed Miracle Knights with a total of more than [-] people on the expedition.

The maid regiment decides whether to stay or leave based on their combat level. Only those with a combat level of eight or above can go on expeditions with the team.

Matthew planned to bring Surante, Mirana, Kalainen and Shirley, whose pseudonym was Winter, but there was opposition after he announced the list.

Melda, who had always been taciturn, insisted on following the expedition.

Matthew wanted to refuse, but her reasons made him change his mind.

"Master, I am a dragon lizard, and swamps and wetlands are my home ground."

The Kingdom of Perth is located in the south, with extensive water networks, swamps, and wetlands. It is indeed beneficial and harmless to bring Melda with you.So she also set off with Matthew.

On October 1203, 10 in the Holy Calendar, the 8-strong army of the Miracle Knights slaughtered chickens and sacrificed flags, leaving the Earl of Rundebell in a mighty manner and heading south.

This was also the first time Matthew led an army of such a large scale on an expedition.

There are more than 8000 cavalry in this 5000-strong army, the rest are infantry, and [-] of them are professional logistics support personnel and engineers.

In this era, the level of logistics support was very low, and the establishment of a separate logistics support department was Matthew's initiative.

Before traveling through time, he loved reading various military books and knew the importance of logistical support.

A layman looks at the equipment, an expert looks at the logistics.

Although Matthew was not born to be a commander, he was good at learning.During the march, he often asked Andre and Debray for common sense about marching and fighting.

Fortunately, Andre and Debray are both excellent generals. He does not need to take care of specific affairs. He only needs to grasp the overall direction of the entire army and manage these two people well.

However, managing these two people is not easy either.

The relationship between Debray and André, although not incompatible, was at least incompatible.

Debray felt that Andre was a pretty boy who relied on men to gain power and liked to ride alone on the battlefield. He was simply a reckless man.

Andre felt that Debray's character was too calm and unable to seize fleeting opportunities. His combat command style was full of ingenuity and he was not considered a famous general.

Faced with the dispute between the two men, Matthew had to set a rule for them.

When both parties have the same opinion, Debray's opinion shall prevail.

When the two parties disagree, Andre's opinion shall prevail.

Matthew's decision was tantamount to handing over the command of the entire army to Andre.Unless he intervenes forcefully, Andre has the final say.

Making this decision is also a helpless move.

Among the three of them, although Matthew knew a lot of military theories that transcended the times, his actual command ability was at best that of a brigade commander.

He commanded 5000 men with ease, commanded 1 men barely, and commanded 6 men with great difficulty.So he could only delegate power.

But the army can only have one voice, so Matthew chose Andre.

The reason for choosing Andre is very simple. Debray is Matthew's subordinate and will accept orders whether he likes it or not.

But Andre is different. He and Matthew are allies. If he is not convinced, he may really go against Debray.

More importantly, this battle is not a normal [-]-[-] battle, and victory must be won in danger.Debray's calm personality is a good thing, but it also makes him often hesitate when faced with opportunities.

If you want stability, choose Debray, and if you want to fight, you must choose Andre.

After three days of march, the army arrived at the border of the province of Groningen.

There are three ways to get to the war zone.

The first one is a mountain road, which is rugged and difficult to navigate and has many forks, which is conducive to the concealed advance of the army.

The second road is a plain road, which is flat and easy to travel, and has a smooth surface, which is conducive to the rapid advancement of the army.

The third path is a swampy area, so muddy that no normal person would choose this path.

However, since Melda could find a passage through the swamp, this road was also an option.

Faced with these three choices, Andre made a decision without even a second of hesitation.

"Take the plain road!"

Facing the confused looks of others, he gave an explanation.

"Taking the mountain road is courting death. This is now an enemy-occupied area, and it is much easier for the enemy to obtain intelligence than it is for us. No matter how concealed we are, there is a high probability of being detected by the enemy."

"If the enemy figures out our path, we'll be repeating the story of Didier's fool."

This reason is so good that even Debray, who likes to contradict him, can't find anything wrong with him.

If you deny the mountain road, you can only choose between plains and swamps.

Hearing that Andre chose Pingyuan, Melda was so angry that she spat out fragrance on the spot. In her opinion, this was clearly a distrust of her, no, this was an insult to her!

She cursed and swore that if she could not lead the whole army safely through, she would drown in the most foul-smelling swamp.

Seeing how determined Melda was, Matthew also thought it would be a good idea to walk through the swamp.

When passing through the plains, we might bump into the enemy's main force. Wouldn't this be very troublesome?

Facing everyone's doubts, Andre showed a confident smile.

"We are going to collide head-on with the enemy!"

"The main force of the Kingdom of Perth has suffered heavy losses and will definitely have to go back to rest and replenish its troops. There is basically no need to consider them until next spring."

"The enemies we can encounter are most likely the cavalry troops of Khan Zalandin of the Fire-seeking Khanate, or the troops of the United Goblin Chamber of Commerce."

Andre made a playful gesture of spreading his hands and said with a smile: "Of course, the possibility of them coming together is not too high, but it cannot be ignored."

Listening to his words, other people's faces turned dark.

Listen, is this human?

Isn't it stupid to insist on attacking even though you know the enemy is in the plains?

Looking at everyone's wonderful expressions, Andre let out a sweet laugh like a silver bell, and explained softly: "If you were the enemy's generals, what would you think when you saw our army emerging from the Great Plains in great strength?"

"Of course they think we are a bunch of fools!" Debray answered without hesitation.

He had long disliked Andre.

He is obviously a pretty boy, but he is entrusted with an important task by Matthew. He is still so talkative at a moment when the life and death of the entire army is decided. Do you really think this is just playing house?

This is war!Cruel war!

Debray's words were serious, but others were lost in thought.

Matthew has killed two famous generals in just half a year. Both Karl and Fisher are veteran generals who have experienced hundreds of battles. Who dares to regard Matthew who killed them as a fool?

If the enemy cannot figure out the intentions of the Miracle Knights, they will be confused.

Most of them would not dare to go out in full force, but would send out small troops to test.With just a small force, there is no way they can stop the Miracle Knights.

Seeing that everyone was deep in thought, Andre reminded again: "In our expedition this time, it will be difficult to defeat the enemy by our own strength. We must gather the remnants of the Southern Front Army to strengthen ourselves and defeat the enemy."

Andre's plan does make sense, but there are still risks.

Debray calmed down slightly, but continued to raise questions.Even though it makes him look like a jerk, there are some things he still has to say.

"What if the enemy's commander is a reckless man? What if they choose to attack arrogantly after a great victory?"

"Can we stop the enemy in the plains?"

This is a very real problem.

Although Andre's analysis was correct, no one could guarantee what the enemy's general would think.

What if the other person is bloated or crazy?Are they going to accuse the enemy of not playing by the rules?

Facing Debray's question, Andre restrained his somewhat joking expression and said seriously:

"General Debray, you are right. The enemy may indeed send out the main force to fight us on the plains."

Unexpectedly, Andre actually admitted it, and Debray looked a little stunned.Although he often quarrels with Andre, he knows that this is a critical moment and they must unite.

He didn't speak, just asked with his eyes, what should I do?

Andre said seriously: "Don't ask me what to do, defense is your specialty. General Debray, are you confident that you can withstand the attack of a hundred thousand troops on the plain?"

Debray raised his head proudly, snorted softly, and said disdainfully: "Unless the logistical supplies are cut off, I can fight until the enemy can no longer fight."

"What if it's 30 million?"

Debray frowned and said softly: "Although it is difficult, it can still be done. But if there are no reinforcements, it will be very difficult to break through."

Andre said with a smile: "Under normal circumstances, if you want to surround and annihilate the enemy, you must have 5-10 times the military strength. Even if we advance from the plains and the enemy wants to eat us, we must mobilize at least 25-30 troops. Only then can it be done.”

"If they really did this, would there be anyone behind them?"

Insufficient military strength is a huge problem facing the Kingdom of Perth.

There are about 10,000+ regular troops of the Kingdom who are still on the front, plus Zalandin's 20 cavalry and the 20 Goblin United Chamber of Commerce. The number seems to be a lot, but they will also face the same problem as Model, lacking unified command. .

On the surface, these three forces are allies, but in fact they are using each other.

To surround and eat Matthew's main force, at least two forces need to be fully mobilized, which is not easy.

If they mobilized at all, the rear would be empty.

But now there is still a problem, even if there is an empty space behind them, who will go around them?

Faced with this problem, Andre slowly turned around and gave Melda a knight's salute.

"Miss Melda, I'd like to ask you to outflank us from the Dolan Swamp."

Chapter 153 No Discrimination

Andre's battle plan was simple, divide the army into two parts.

The large force, mainly infantry, advanced frontally with great fanfare to gather the defeated troops of the Southern Front.

Six thousand cavalry and a few auxiliary troops circled through the swamp area, and after the enemy was dispatched in full force, they circled behind and exploded.

The army in the feudal era often had problems in command due to organizational and communication problems.Even if there are only three thousand cavalry behind them, the panic caused may swallow up an army of 20.

Andre's idea was approved by everyone.

Matthew made only one change and he led the Raiders.

If he only leads a few thousand people to fight, Brigadier Matthew is more than qualified.

As a result, the army was divided into two teams outside the border. One of the teams, led by Andry and Debray, entered the province of Groningen in a grand manner.