Before Xu Lai could speak, Elena, who was called by Xu Lai, took the first step and grabbed Xu Lai's sleeve.
Elena is none other than the one who is most trusted by Xu Lai among the local indigenous people.
What Xu Lai will do next concerns the entire grassland. Except for Yu Lan, Elvi, Roland and others around him are not good candidates for negotiation.
After the New Year, Ji Long should have quickly returned to the team and helped Xu Lai lead a group of logistics personnel to come over for support.
But as Xu Lai's territory increased, there were dozens of city lords, financial officers, regimental commanders, deputy regimental commanders, etc. who reported directly to him.
Not to mention municipal reports at all levels, financial reports, personnel reports, etc.
Some of these things are not important, but Xu Lai must know, while some are very important and must be given immediate instructions.
With so many reports, just reading the documents would make Xu Lai exhausted and unable to do anything else.
Therefore, Xu Lai has reached the point where he must have a full-time secretary, and one is no longer enough.
After the underground world is calmed down, the threat to Mingyue City is not that big, and there is no need to imprison Yu Lan there.
Xu Lai planned to hand over the entire Mingyue City to Dier and let him serve as the city lord instead of just letting him be responsible for military defense.
Xu Lai doesn't have to worry about Dill's loyalty, the only thing he worries about is his ability.
After all, even if Dill has some experience, it is all experience in combat and military organization. Although the underground population is not large, most of them are criminals and their families, so they can be managed in a militarized manner.
But from Mingyue City to Da Kehor, this large area of territory has been planned to be owned by Xu Lai.
The underground cities destroyed along the way are enough to upgrade Mingyue City to a large castle-level city.
After the city wall of Qingfeng City was built, Xu Lai had successively sent some farmers in the opposite direction to Mingyue City to mine the gold mines first.
Judging from the current situation, farmers who only rely on monthly growth have a long way to go if they want to fully unlock underground resources.
So Xu Lai had the idea of being a prisoner of war again.
After conquering the castle this time, Xu Lai was not in a hurry to collect prisoners. He just hoped that after screening, all the impure soldiers would be sent underground.
Therefore, Mingyue City not only recruits farmers, but also has an increasing population in the future.
After thinking about it for a while, Xu Lai simply mentioned it to Bello and asked him to serve as deputy city lord to assist Dill.
Bello has been the king of the prairie for so many years, and there is no doubt about his management ability. With his assistance to Dill, he will definitely be able to manage several underground cities properly and achieve Xu Lai's goal as soon as possible.
Considering that there will be more and more secretarial work in the future, coupled with so many prisoners, it is impossible for Xu Lai to screen them one by one in person.
He asked Jilong to select some qualified secretaries in Martell City and Qingfeng City, and then bring the logistics personnel over.
Xu Lai plans to set up a special secretariat, and the secretary-general is naturally Yu Lan, whom he has longed for.
Jilong still serves as the adjutant, equivalent to a full-time assistant, mainly responsible for military assistance.
As for the Secretariat, they are responsible for all matters big and small, and they have to participate in everything. They are equivalent to Xu Lai's clones. Of course, except for Yu Lan, the other secretaries have no decision-making power.
Now the Secretariat has just been established, the staff has not yet been recruited, and those present are unable to discuss major matters, so Xu Lai invited Elena over.
Hancock is smart enough, but unfortunately he has not yet gained Xu Lai's trust, so he cannot appear here.
It was only after seeing Elena present that Aini dared to take this gamble.
Ordinary oaths, no matter whose name they are sworn in, are just idealistic.
But in this magical world, swearing in the name of the true God is by no means just a matter of idealism. It must have material cause and effect.
In particular, Xu Lai is the favored one of the God of War. If he swears in the name of his old man but breaks his oath in the end, no matter how much the God of War favors Xu Lai, he will definitely punish Xu Lai.
Even if Xu Lai is right, the punishment will not be light. Even if the God of War's divine power cannot extend into the material world, at least there will be no more divine followers.
If only two people swear an oath in a secret room, even if Xu Lai violates the oath, whether he will be punished or not will only depend on the mood and considerations of the God of War.
But once there is a third witness, especially in the presence of a temple priest, the authority of God cannot be challenged, and Xu Lai will definitely be severely punished.
Xu Lai is not afraid of losing his identity as a favored one, but if the medal on his chest loses its effect, he will have to worry.
Although the God of War Medal of Honor does not add any attributes, the Gaze of the God of War on it can help him block the sight of other gods.
At the same time, its inability to be divined or predicted makes it difficult for Xu Lai to fall into the plans of underground magicians, stronghold shamans, necromancers and hell cultists.
It is precisely with the protection of this medal that Xu Lai is able to remain safe until now.
Otherwise, some of these guys from the evil camp are capable of plotting against him until he dies.
Even some evil witchcraft does not need to be close to Xu Lai. As long as you get some samples of Xu Lai, you can use spells to snipe at super long range.
However, the characteristics of being unable to be divined and predicted meant that no evil wizard could target Xu Lai.
Even if Xu Lai doesn't understand the risks involved, Elena must explain it clearly to Xu Lai.
Like Yu Lan, she also didn’t think Aini had any good intentions.
And even if Ainifa and Xu Lai make the same oath, it will be useless.
Because Xu Lai is a favored one by God, but Aini is not. Aini cannot even be regarded as a devout believer in the God of War. At most, he is just a general believer.
Pan-believers do not enjoy any benefits and naturally do not bear any responsibilities.
Elina did not avoid Aini. Except for outsiders like Xu Lai, everyone who was born and raised in this world knew about this kind of thing.
Moreover, saying this in front of Aini can also make Aini feel at ease.
After all, Aini's purpose was not to let the oath punish Xu Lai, but to make Xu Lai worry about the power of the oath.
If Xu Lai really didn't know anything and still regarded it as a vow without any binding force, people might have to kill him when they turn around.
At that time, even if Xu Lai was punished by God for this, Aini would have nothing left.
After thinking for a while, Xu Lai swore in front of Aini:
“I swear in the name of His Majesty the God of War that if the orcs are defeated with the help of Aini, I will spare his life
If, with Aini's help, I can severely injure the orcs, I will help them and their family regain their due honor.
If I violate this oath, I am willing to bear all the divine punishment from the God of War. "
After the oath was over, Xu Lai said to Aini: "Can you accept such an oath? "
Xu Lai's tone was serious. He was forced to swear in public, and naturally he felt uncomfortable.
If Aini's answer did not satisfy him, then Xu Lai would definitely let Aini know, What are the consequences of angering him?
Aini also noticed Xu Lai's anger and knew that if he made any other demands at this time, something would happen.
“Of course I agree, of course I agree.” Wiping the non-existent cold sweat on his forehead, Aini knew that it was time for him to reveal something real.
Xu Lai doesn’t seem to be a very patient person.
Aini thought for a long time, and after organizing his words in his heart, he began to say:
"About a month ago, that is, after the conflict at Fort Kaunaston was calmed down.
I know that I can no longer get back what I lost by relying solely on my own strength. We must look for foreign aid.
But you also know that wars are going on in various parts of the empire, and I really can’t find any reinforcements, so I came up with the idea of establishing a base for the orcs.”
“ Okay, okay, don’t flatter yourself, everyone knows what’s going on, just tell us how you colluded with the orcs.”
Aini was stunned for a moment, he also knew this. It was a disgraceful thing, so I subconsciously wanted to defend myself.
However, Xu Lai didn't give any face to him and exposed him directly.
“Ahem, I sent a delegation to the stronghold, headed by my mage advisor Parame.
Just this morning, we just had a long-distance search. Magic communication.
It has been determined that the orcs need one to two months to prepare for the battle.
The ones they attacked on the grassland before were the vanguard groups organized nearby.
But the forward army was frustrated in the grassland, and you destroyed the logistics supply line.
According to the last message the orcs gave me, the ogre tribe, half-orc tribe and wolf cavalry tribe near Pingfeng Mountain were all severely damaged.
So, if they want to attack the grassland, they must mobilize troops, food, grass and supplies from other places.
That's it, after I promised to give them enough food and grass supplies. They only need to carry the food and grass they need to cross their own Gobi, and enough meat for Behemoth and the Cyclops. "
"Behemoth, one-eyed? It seems that the orcs are really going to mobilize their entire army this time. ”
In the previous time, although Behemoth and One-Eye also appeared, the overall number was not large and they were not considered the main force.
This time, listening to Aini's words, it is obvious that powerful legions such as the Beamon Legion and the One-Eyed Legion are going to be dispatched.
The existence of the Cyclops makes up for the problem of the orcs traveling long distances and being unable to carry remote equipment.
And Beamon is the king of field battles. Not to mention that Xu Lai’s Paladins are not yet up to the level of the Beamon Army. Even if they are, they may not be able to win in field battles.
Behemoth ignores the characteristics of defense, and his restraint on defense skills is too great. Even if Reina leads the army, the difference is not big.
Aini quickly agreed: "This is inevitable. You may not know that in order to prepare for this attack, the orcs and the swamp camp also signed a peace agreement with each other."
Yu Lan frowned and said: "We already know these, let's talk about something we don't know."
Aini said bitterly: "You actually know this, so you must have guessed the movements of the orcs. "
Yu Lan nodded and said: "Yes, we have known for a long time that the orcs want to invade the grassland again
And in order to deal with this time the orc invasion, we decided to eliminate the threats on the grassland in advance. , remove it cleanly.”
The so-called threat on the grassland is naturally Aini and several other nobles who have still not surrendered until now.
Aini opened his mouth, but he had no reason to refute others. He was indeed a threat on the grassland.
“The orcs asked me to prepare enough food for an army of 500,000 people to eat for a month.
We have not reached an agreement on this point. Although there are more animals on the grassland, Capturing also requires manpower and time.
Orcs mainly eat meat. Just 3,000 Behemoths and 20,000 giants need to consume thousands of tons of meat at a time.
If we add the thunderbirds, wolf cavalry and orc warriors, even if we clean the entire grassland, it will not be enough for them to eat for half a month.
Therefore, due to food restrictions, the orc army can only reduce its main force and increase the number of big-eared monsters to reserve military rations.
If you just want to drive away the orcs, I suggest using the strategy of clearing the wilderness and moving all the towns and villages west of the Stone Castle behind the Stone Castle.
Furthermore, in addition to food and livestock, all humans must also be relocated. Orcs also have a unique hobby for human food.
It is best not to store much food in Stubborn Castle. Leave a few days of military rations, use city defense weapons to support them for a few days, and then retreat.
Trading space for time, the first one who can't bear it must be the orcs. ”
Xu Lai knew that Aini’s words made sense. Aini and the temple had done the same thing before.
It’s just that compared with the original, the number of his own troops was greatly reduced, and the enemy But their strength has increased several times.
At first, they had the help of towers and elves, but Xu Lai had none.
Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the wall and clear the country. It's not enough to use Stone Castle as the boundary.
"It is necessary to strengthen the walls and clear the fields, but this is not enough. What if I want to preserve the Stone Castle?"
Aini licked his lips and said: "Then there is only one way. Try every means to weaken the combat effectiveness of the orcs, such as poisoning the food. "Poisoning? Do we have such a large amount of poison? Are the orcs not stupid?"
Aini looked at Xu Lai and said: "Even if I personally send them food and grass, they can't rest assured, they must be able to detect poisons.
However, we can If the water source is poisoned, they will not suspect anything if they take the water themselves.
And even if they were discovered, they would have no choice but to find a way to crack the toxin or capture our town before the reserve water runs out. "
Xu Lai's heart skipped a beat, but he immediately shook his head and said: "The orcs are coming from the west, and their direction is upstream of the river.
If we apply poison upstream, our own people will also be infected.
Even if we have an antidote, it is impossible for all the crops and livestock along the river to take the antidote.
This method won’t work. The hidden dangers are too great. Even if the orcs are driven away, we will still suffer huge losses. ”
Aini thought for a while and said: "If you are not willing to take action on the water source, then there is only one way left."
Xu Lai quickly asked: "What way?"
Ani said: "This was originally a tactic I wanted to use to threaten the orcs. These guys have no credibility at all.
The orcs can only conduct toxin identification on food, but they generally do not conduct poison testing on living things.
I have two methods for you to choose. One has a higher success rate, but may be more cruel. ” (End of this chapter)