readsfreenovel Chapter 659 Travel
Chapter 659 Travel
King Midland was intently reviewing the letter from the Kingdom of Huldland, an official document concerning King John of Huldland's visit to Midland.
The letter was carefully worded and clearly organized, listing all the events that the Heldran side planned to attend, the exact time schedule, and the complete route from the border to the capital. It even took into account the etiquette and reception details for the entourage along the way, showing that the Heldran royal family attached great importance to this trip.
After reading it through, the King of Midland fell into deep thought. According to the usual diplomatic protocol, John's itinerary should have focused on the Midland capital, Wyndam, for a monarchical meeting, joint attendance at a royal banquet, a guard inspection, trade negotiations, and a series of other official events. These events were all planned in detail in the letter, and there was nothing wrong with them.
But what struck him as unusual was the additional note at the end of the letter: John would be traveling to the Southwest Governor of Midland after concluding his activities in Wyndam.
This proposal aroused doubt in King Midland's mind.
He had long suspected that even though John had left his post as Governor of the Southwest, he might still retain some implicit control over the governors he had previously managed.
After all, ten years ago, when John was still the governor of the Southwest, he carried out sweeping reforms in the region and also placed some of his own people in positions of power.
However, due to two reasons, he has not been able to conduct a detailed investigation.
Firstly, the Hundred Years' War between Midland and the Yoda Empire was at a critical stage, and the supply of troops and strategic deployments on the eastern front had already exhausted most of his energy, leaving him with no energy to spare for even the slightest disturbances in the rear.
Secondly, in order to maintain friendly relations with the Kingdom of Heldran and avoid being accused of "suspicion of a neighboring country" and disrupting the fragile balance between the two nations, he could only choose to tolerate this potential influence for the time being.
More importantly, during the decade following John's departure, the Governor-General of the Southwest maintained a rare period of stability.
There was no rebellion of any kind, not even a small-scale riot by displaced people. Local agricultural production progressed steadily, commercial trade was orderly, and taxes were paid in full and on time to the royal treasury every year, making it the most reliable source of supplies for Midland's rear.
For a kingdom mired in war, such a stable rear area is a godsend. He has no reason to rashly disrupt the local political landscape based on a few unfounded speculations. If it causes unrest and leads to the disruption of the supply lines to the front, the consequences would be unimaginable.
But John's initiative to go to the Southwest Governorate served as a wake-up call for King Midland.
Why would a foreign monarch make a special trip to a territory that does not belong to his own country during an overseas visit?
Is it simply a return visit to familiar places, or is it an attempt to use the guise of "inspection" to reconnect with old subordinates, consolidate power, or even secretly make moves?
Various speculations swirled in his mind, forcing him to re-examine this land that he had long neglected.
He realized that whatever John's true purpose was, the strategic importance of the Southwest Governor-General far exceeded his previous assessment, and from this moment on, he had to give it sufficient attention and firmly control the region.
According to reports from the front lines, the Midland army has completed the siege of Rona and preparations for the siege are nearing completion. The general offensive can be launched in less than a month.
Once Rona City is captured, the reconquest of the entire Rona territory will only be a matter of time.
Rona Territory is the eastern barrier of the Kingdom of Yoda. Taking it would be tantamount to breaching Yoda's defenses.
After reclaiming Rona, the next step is to head straight for Dordore, the core stronghold of Yoda's Midland Kingdom and the decisive battleground of this Hundred Years' War.
Once Midland captures Dordorei Territory, it will be able to completely turn the tide of the war, officially declare victory in this protracted conflict, and rewrite the political landscape of the entire continent.
But King Midland knew very well that conquering the Doldore Territory would be no easy task, especially Doldore Fortress, which was far more formidable than any ordinary fortress city.
Its defenses were almost on par with those of Windam, the capital of Midland. The city walls were covered with a variety of advanced defensive equipment, including catapults and ballistae. Even more frightening was the presence of a large number of heavy artillery pieces, which could inflict devastating damage on any attacking army.
Taking such an impregnable city would be impossible without sufficient artillery support.
However, a real problem lies ahead. Due to the great plague that swept across the entire continent three years ago, coupled with the subsequent famine and refugee uprisings, many of Midland's original artillery workshops suffered catastrophic destruction. Now, only a few remain, barely managing to keep operating, with their production capacity greatly reduced, making it impossible to meet the needs of large-scale siege warfare.
One of them was located in Montmartre, the capital of the Southwestern Governorate. Thanks to John's governance, the area still retained some intact production equipment and a group of experienced technical workers. However, due to a lack of funds and policy support, the scale of the workshops had not been able to recover.
Previously, the court had submitted a new policy proposal to expand and upgrade the artillery workshops in Mondmasan, restoring and increasing artillery production capacity. However, due to the tense situation at the front and the priority of the budget to supply the army, the matter was temporarily shelved.
"Perhaps it's time to restart this project."
King Midland pondered to himself.
However, he soon realized that it would be difficult for Midland to quickly expand the workshop and increase production capacity on his own.
After the epidemic, the shortage of skilled workers will be difficult to solve in the short term, and some core manufacturing technologies are on the verge of being lost due to the loss of craftsmen. Overcoming these problems in a short period of time will not be easy.
Of course, there is another possibility, which is to set up a factory in cooperation with Heldran.
Midland possesses ample funds, vast land, and abundant mineral resources, while Heldran boasts superb artillery manufacturing technology and a large number of experienced craftsmen. The two countries complement each other perfectly by leveraging their respective strengths.
If a cooperation can be reached, Midland will be responsible for providing funds, land, and raw materials such as minerals, while Heldran will be responsible for sending craftsmen and imparting technology. Together, they will expand the artillery workshop in Mondmasan. This will not only rapidly increase the production of cannons, shells, and gunpowder, making ample preparations for attacking Dordore Castle, but also further consolidate the friendly relations between the two countries, which can be described as killing two birds with one stone.
With this thought in mind, King Midland's doubts completely vanished.
John's desire to go to the Southwest Governorate actually provided him with an excellent opportunity to both test John's true intentions and promote military cooperation between the two countries.
Without further hesitation, he immediately decided to agree to all the travel arrangements proposed in John's letter.
He then immediately summoned the scribe, young Hoss, and gave the following order:
“Immediately draft a reply to King John of Heldland, clearly informing him that our country fully agrees to his proposed itinerary and welcomes his visit at that time.”
As young Hoss was about to leave after receiving his orders, he added:
"Furthermore, inform the Cabinet and court ministers that an emergency meeting will be held tomorrow at Chenshi (7-9 AM) in the Government Office to specifically discuss all preparations for King Heldran's visit, ensuring that everything goes smoothly."
……
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. King John of Heldland was sitting in his study in the palace dealing with state affairs when a servant suddenly presented him with a letter from Midland, which was a reply that Midland's ambassador to Helmingen had just delivered.
John put down the documents in his hand, took the letter, and was slightly surprised:
"You got a reply so quickly."
He opened the letter and read it carefully.
The letter was warmly and appropriately worded, clearly stating that the Kingdom of Midland fully agreed to all of his previously proposed travel itineraries and extended a warm welcome to his visit.
In addition, Midland added several schedules to the letter. John reviewed them one by one and found that most of the new schedules were special meetings on the purchase of gunpowder weapons and joint ventures.
John was not surprised to see these new additions.
Of course, these business negotiations involving specific interests are matters that ministers of both countries need to discuss in detail. They are tedious and complex, and do not require the monarch's personal intervention.
As he expected, the meeting between the two monarchs mentioned in the letter was just another formality, discussing the traditional friendship between the two countries and strengthening diplomatic cooperation. It was nothing more than maintaining a superficial peace and friendship. The real core interests would ultimately be contested by the ministers at the negotiating table.