Chapter 172 172. Politics

Arrows are costly.

Iron arrowheads need to be repeatedly polished by hand to be sharp. Arrow shafts and tail feathers need to be made of high-quality materials to ensure the range.

There is a huge gap between low-quality arrows and high-quality arrows in terms of range, accuracy, and lethality.

This is reflected on the battlefield as the casualty ratio of both sides.

Generally speaking, twenty or thirty high-quality arrows are enough to exchange for a cow.

However, on average, it doesn't kill a single person.

Not everyone is an archer who can hit the target every time. As long as the attacking party is dispersed enough, the arrow hit rate will be so low that it will make people shake their heads and hold their foreheads.

Therefore, during wartime, it is a very cost-effective thing to use worthless human lives to consume enemy arrows.

Moreover, food is generally in short supply now. Using war to consume a large number of surplus inferior population has become a political means for countries to maintain political stability.

An unspoken open secret.

Rather than having unrest within the country due to food shortages and wasting the country's strength, it is better to do so.

It would be better to take people to neighboring countries to plunder. Whether or not they get food or die unfortunately, the problem can be solved once and for all.

“Dirty politics!”

Brand felt disgusted from the bottom of her heart. But at this point, she still wanted to make her own sacrifice more valuable.

If there was a chance to capture the city, or to lay siege for a long time, it would be great to force Duke Dafen to hand over the secret of limit-breaking wine through negotiation.

As time passed, the first round of attack came to an end.

The ground in front of the city wall was littered with dead bodies, and the captives' bodies were like hedgehogs, riddled with arrows.

The dazed little girl knelt in the middle of the battlefield, her eyes at a loss.

Which way should I go? My mother was standing in front of her, not breathing.

Although the world is vast, there is no place for us to stay.

The situation was briefly calm.

The kind-hearted warrior captain jumped down from the city wall, ran to the little girl, and hurriedly carried her away.

"Don't give them the chance to retrieve the arrows." Brand said in a deep voice.

The second round of attack followed.

This time, it was a motley army of peasants forcibly conscripted from the border of the Kingdom of Dongqi. They were skinny people wearing ragged brown linen clothes.

The current situation of poverty is obvious.

Compared with the unarmed situation in the first round, the attackers in the second round held a wooden shield in their hands, which had a strong psychological comfort effect.

The war supervisor said in a loud voice: "The general has ordered that we exchange arrows for food. Each intact arrow can be exchanged for ten pounds of black potatoes. A damaged arrow can be exchanged for five pounds, and the tip of the arrow must be there."

Upon hearing this, the scene was in an uproar.

The militiamen's timid eyes suddenly turned fanatical.

Rushing to the top of the city wall would mean death, but if we snatch a few arrows from the city wall, wouldn't it be easy? Food! We can exchange it for food!

A group of foolish people mustered up the courage to rush forward and face the rain of arrows from the city wall.

Another scene of people falling down in large numbers.

The arrows easily penetrated the wooden boards, piercing through people's shoulders, palms, and various parts of the body.

Amidst the tragic wails.

Some lucky ones managed to get some arrows and stumbled to the quartermaster to exchange them.

Brand fulfilled his promise promptly and the black potatoes were exactly the right amount.

After a few rounds, most of the arrows under the city wall were collected.

"Sir, the injured militia wants to seek our help." A white-robed spellcaster came to the side of the Tyrannosaurus Rex and saluted.

The terrifying dragon beast slowly turned its head. It opened its mouth wide, and its sharp fangs shed a large amount of saliva uncontrollably. Its golden slit pupils stared at the slightly trembling figure of the caster.

This is a Tyrannosaurus Rex with gout, a violent temper, and a man-eating pleasure.

"Don't worry about them. Let them fend for themselves." A raging blood-red aura burned on Brand's body.

The Tyrannosaurus Rex crouched down and became quiet.

On the side of Chenguang City, after discussion, everyone understood the intention of the commander of Dongqi.

"Lord Dafen, the Kingdom Army wants to consume our city defense equipment. Don't be fooled!"

"Are you going to just ignore it? Let them clear away all the barriers we set up to protect the city?"

"Perhaps, we can send out our elite troops to prevent them from getting close."

"How many people are you sending? If you have too few, they'll just be sent packing. If you have too many, the other side will be eager for you to leave the city for a decisive battle. They have the advantage in numbers and equipment, and we don't know if there are any experts hidden in the dark."

The two ruling scholars argued endlessly and could not reach a consensus.

"How many arrows do we have left?" Duke Dafen interrupted.

"There are 33,000 high-quality arrows left, 92,000 ordinary arrows left, and 300,000 bamboo arrows left." The third steward in charge of ordnance management reported.

"High-quality arrows can only be used by elite archers and above in the future." Duke Dafen made the decision.

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"Yes!" the third butler responded loudly.

Ordinary arrows have difficulty penetrating thick wooden boards, and their range will be greatly reduced.

As for bamboo arrows, they are like children's toys in a large-scale war. As long as you use your arms to protect your vital parts, it is difficult to cause fatal injuries.

Duke Dafen certainly knew this. Normally, in battle, the best arrows were used to suppress the enemy's morale through intensive shooting, causing psychological pressure.

If the enemy has no morale, then there is no need.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

The Wang Guo army made many attempts but never launched a general attack. No one knew what they were waiting for.

Dafen believes that time is on his side.

Chenguang City has sufficient food and grass, and there is also a vast territory to support it. As long as the temperature drops, the enemy will have to retreat.

A cloud of light black mist transformed into a jet-black crow and landed on the signal tower of Black Fort.

"Lord Dafen, good news!"

"What good news? Tell me quickly."

"Lord Earl Daina, we successfully repelled the army of the Kingdom of Talon, killing tens of thousands of enemy soldiers."

"Good! She did a great job." Dafen was delighted, knowing that his sister Dana would never brag. These 10,000 people were definitely killed.

Then the war would be over.

At the end of September, the Kingdom of Dongqi withdrew its troops from the southern border of the Principality of Xien.

There were only ruins left. Dozens of villages and towns between the two countries were destroyed.

The war is not over.

In the following month, the Principality of Allans suffered an even more severe blow, with more than a dozen cities in the territory falling and countless villages and towns suffering losses.

Finally, with the support of the Allied Dragon Cavalry and strong men, the situation was barely stabilized.

In this war, hundreds of thousands of people were killed or wounded on both sides.

Despite this, food was still far from enough, and large numbers of people fled from famine in various countries of the East Continent.

People who searched for food everywhere eventually became bandits. In order to survive, they brandished knives to take food from the weak. In vain, everyone ate each other.

This year, the situation in the East Continent was turbulent.

In the history records, a scarlet page was left behind, which later generations called the year of war, disaster and misfortune.

In this cruel world, there may be only one place where life is still peaceful.

The corner of the eastern continent is called the Free Territory.

Fortune Place, sixth floor auditorium.

Lovey sat upright on a solid wood chair with intricate patterns, warming himself by a cement stove, while admiring the snowflakes falling outside the window.

(End of this chapter)