All the contract girls want to marry me

"There is a saying in my hometown, 'Those who know me know that I am worried, and those who don't know me know that I am asking for nothing.' This sentence is probably my true mood now."

"Who am I and why don't you make up your own mind?"

Diana was stunned for three seconds, then she pursed her lips and let out a cheerful chuckle.

That's great. This sentence reminded her of the time when she first arrived at Rundebel Territory, when Matthew told her to let her make her own judgment.

After more than half a year of twists and turns, everything is back to where it started.

Diana could understand Matthew's mood. Although obedient subordinates were hard to find, there were many around Matthew.

She knew what she had to do.

After the bridge agreement, Matthew led the army into the city of Groningen.

Looking at the city ravaged by war, he summoned the existing officials and asked them to fulfill their duties and restore order to the province as soon as possible.

In the face of these officials' concerns about safety, Matthew calmly made his commitment.

"The war in Groningen is over, you don't have to worry about safety."

The officials did not believe what Matthew said, but they did not dare to refute and could only agree.

Matthew could understand their mood and explained loudly.

"Don't worry, I mean safety when I say safety. It won't be long before Groningen is no longer a border province."

Matthew looked around the audience as he spoke, and his confidence infected everyone.

The panicked mood of these officials suddenly calmed down.

Officials are all smart people, so of course they can understand the meaning behind Matthew's words.The starting point of this war is Groningen, but the end point is by no means the recapture of Groningen.

The Kingdom of Perth invaded the Empire. If it was only content to fight a defensive war, where would the Empire's face be?

And this kind of thing is not only about face, but also actual interests.

In this war, the empire paid hundreds of thousands of soldiers, and the heavy price of a front army being defeated. Coupled with the casualties and displacement of ordinary people, the losses were simply immeasurable.

This revenge must be avenged, and immediately!

Although he wanted to take action against the Kingdom of Perth immediately, Matthew knew that the army was exhausted and must now rest in Groningen to restore combat effectiveness and prepare for the next stage of the war.

There is much more he has to do.

Restore the normal order of life and production in the province, eliminate the spies left behind by the Kingdom of Perth when it left, collect the remnants of the Southern Front Army, and collect the 5 Gurila tribe who are still trapped in the Dolan Swamp.

Matthew handed over the disposal of Gurira to Melda and Taize.

On the surface, he respects the Dolan Swamp clan's right to dominate Dolan Swamp, but in fact this is not the case at all.

If Matthew really respected the Dolan tribe, he would not lead the army into the Dolan Swamp.

He was just testing Taize.

He wonders about Taize's brains and loyalty.

Anyone who is not blind can see that Matthew does not need Gurira and [-] prisoners, all he needs is Gurira's body and the canceled establishment.

If Taize pretends to be stupid, he will lose his place in Matthew's future plan, and the lizard people will become a marginalized existence under Matthew.

People have to make many choices in life, some are important, some are not important, and some can determine the direction of life.

That's the choice Taizé has to make now.

Matthew gives him opportunities but doesn't force him to do anything.

He will give his subordinates opportunities to find out their abilities and make the best use of them, but he will not give them tasks beyond their capabilities and tolerance.

He prefers to know people and make good use of them, rather than forcing people to make good use of them.

Melda's loyalty is unquestionable, but she has no political acumen and is just an excellent thug. She does not have the ability or structure to lead the lizard people on the road to prosperity.

So Matthew did not leave the final decision to her.

Taize was different from Melda. He was able to lead the lizardman tribe to survive in the Dolan Swamp, so he had real skills.

Matthew didn't need prisoners. He wanted the 5 people led by Gulila to rot in the swamp. However, there were some things that could be thought but not spoken outright.

Lizard people have their own morals and values. If they are forced to do this kind of thing, it may be counterproductive.

This matter can only be understood by Taize himself.

The royal troops directly under the Kingdom of Perth have suffered heavy losses. If all 5 people have to go back, Matthew's plan to march to the Kingdom of Perth will have variables.

It is indeed cruel not to take prisoners, but to allow them to go back and continue to resist is cruel to the empire.

Matthew hopes Taize will make the right decision, but he won't force it.

His order to Taizé was to never allow Gurira's troops to appear during the expedition against the Kingdom of Perth.

As for how to do this, Matthew did not say.But the answer is already clear.

Gurila only brought a dozen days of food with him when he set out. Even if he killed all the horses, he would only be able to last for two months at most.

When will the Perth Kingdom crusade end?

no one knows.

After the confrontation on the battlefield ends, diplomats from both sides will engage in a new round of confrontation.

When they come up with the outcome, who knows when it will be.

If Taize wants to fulfill Matthew's instructions, the best way is to kill all 5 people, the second way is to force them to surrender, and the last way is to continue to trap them and provide the minimum supply of food.

This is Taize's troubles, Matthew still has a lot to do.

The border between the Kingdom of Perth and the Empire of Clare returned to pre-war levels.After the main force was annihilated, the Kingdom of Perth wisely chose to withdraw its troops and sent an envoy to the Clare Empire to sue for peace.

At the same time, Zalandin disappeared without a trace, as if he had never been here.

He even released most of the plundered population and prisoners of war during the evacuation.

He was trying to show goodwill to the Empire in this way.

Although he wanted to chop this shameless robber into pieces, Matthew knew that the emperor would probably accept this result.

Zalandin's Huxun Khanate is different from the Kingdom of Perth. They are nomadic people who live in pursuit of water and grass. They do not value land, but rather value cattle, horses, wealth and population.

This time they actually put down the population, which according to the logic of the prairie people was a huge act of goodwill.

However, in Matthew's view, this is just the behavior of a robber who throws inconvenient stolen goods on the roadside when he absconds in fear of crime after the crime.

If they really repent, they should keep all their belongings and make compensation.

Sooner or later this account will be settled.

千!.寻?;,:小.!说;::资,,源!;;群''?:2,.,5'",5,5.9?5;!3,0:.;0　　扎兰丁趁火打劫获得的每一分钱，都会成为他未来懊悔的枷锁。

However, Matthew is not the emperor now, so it is not his turn to worry about these things. What he needs to focus on is the specific war against the kingdom.

He has already won a lot for himself and just needs to go further, but it is not enough. ,

The war started in Groningen and ended in Groningen. What kind of victory is this?The fight must continue and reach the capital of the Kingdom of Perth in order to gain the recognition of the people.

For such a grand war goal, it is definitely not enough to rely only on the tens of thousands of people in Matthew's hands plus the 2 remaining members of the Walder Knights.

These days Matthew sent people out to gather the remnants of the Southern Front and called on them to assemble in Groningen.

According to the military laws of the empire, if they go back, they will be fleeing from the battlefield, which will not only be the death penalty, but will also drag down their families.

Previously they had fled simply out of fear of death.

Now Matthew gives them a chance to use martial arts to clear their name.

Of course they won't miss this opportunity.

In just three days, more than 3 troops gathered near the city of Groningen.

Matthew sent Debray to receive and organize this army.

The main commanders of this army were basically dead, and only Lund, the deputy commander-level general, survived. However, this traitor defected when he was needed most, causing irreparable losses to the Southern Front.

From Matthew's point of view, anything can be discussed, except that this person must die.

Oh yes, there is another person who has to die, and that is the Duke of Groningen from the Empire.

After the war broke out, this person not only failed to organize an effective resistance and protect the people of the territory, but even defected to the Kingdom of Perth and married the princess of the kingdom.

He was indeed living a very prosperous life, and could even be called a happy man, if he had not been caught by Matthew.

It's a pity that there are no ifs in this world, only results.

Because the Battle of Groningen turned around so quickly, the unlucky Duke had no time to escape and was caught by Matthew's cavalry.

He and his wife were all arrested and were now under house arrest in the former Duke's Palace.

Matthew did not deal with the rebellious duke privately, but immediately reported his victory to the imperial capital.

He was also a little curious about how the emperor would deal with this treasonous duke.

According to imperial law, a hereditary duke will not be deprived of his title unless he commits treason.Even if he participated in the rebellion, it would only deprive him of his title and hand it to his heir.

However, treason was a highly despised crime within the empire and could be punishable by death. Even the title of hereditary duke could not protect him.

If the Duke of Groningen were an ordinary duke, he would be killed, but he was one of the leaders of the imperial aristocracy and had a very high reputation.

If we follow general rules, serving another country like him does not count as treason.

After all, the phenomenon of holding several national titles is common in most countries except the Clare Empire.

Does His Majesty the Emperor really have the courage to kill the Duke of Groningen as a warning to others?

He was the emperor and had to think about votes.

What would the other nobles think if they killed the Duke?Will they put everyone in danger, and even directly vote out the emperor and replace him with a loser?

The thought of the electorate system gave Matthew a headache.

Although he announced with great enthusiasm that he would participate in the election of emperor in three years, this was more like a picture.

If things develop normally, he might not have a chance until 13 years later.

Just as the moon outside his window was in a daze, there was a knock on the door.

"Matthew, the envoy from the Imperial Capital has arrived."

Chapter 166 The Emperor’s Conditions

When an envoy from the imperial capital comes at this time, it is no surprise that most of them will announce the disposition of the Duke of Groningen and the appointment of frontline commanders.

There is no suspense about the latter.

It would be a big joke not to use Matthew as the commander at this time.

Matthew was more interested in the former.

He turned around slowly, looked into Surante's eyes, and asked softly: "What did your Majesty say?"

"The envoy has brought you a secret message from the emperor. You must open it yourself."

Matthew nodded and walked towards the living room.

His current temporary residence is the city hall.After retaking the province of Groningen, in order to avoid suspicion, he did not live in the Duke's mansion, lest anyone say that he coveted the position of Duke of Groningen.

In the reception room, he saw the messenger.

Matthew was a little surprised that the emissary was dressed in royal attire.

If it was just an ordinary announcement, there would be no need to send members of the royal family.

Although he was surprised, Matthew still greeted him politely.His attitude is neither humble nor arrogant but full of enthusiasm, which is very consistent with his status.

The elector was only half a level lower than the emperor when he met him. If he was just a member of the royal family, there was no need for him to be too humble.

The messenger smiled and quickly introduced himself. This Wendy Himilun was the youngest son of the current emperor. She only had an empty viscount title and no territory.

After graduating from the military academy, he has been serving in the army in northern Xinjiang. In addition to conveying the order this time, he will also follow Matthew to march south.

Matthew looked at Prince Wendy thoughtfully.

The Clare Empire did not have the custom of sending eunuchs to the army. If the emperor wanted to ensure that there would be no problems on the front line, he would often send some members of the royal family to accompany the army.

This kind of royal family accompanying the army represents the authority of the emperor, and their presence will also make frontline commanders have some scruples when doing things.

This young Mr. Wendy was one such soldier.