Mad Kingdom
The decision to build a defensive line was made not only by the Southeast Province, but by almost all the southern border provinces in the shortest possible time.
It must be admitted that the Alpha Kingdom's nobles have a strong sense of crisis.
The situation had barely begun, and before they even knew who the enemy was, they all spontaneously started preparing for war.
Before any leads could be found in the assassination case, the defense plans for each province had already been presented to Caesar IV.
By custom, nobles did not need to report to the King when building military defenses on their own territories; in fact, the kingdom encouraged border nobles to build more castles and fortresses.
Such a formal request was not because the nobles respected the King; their main purpose was simply to ask for money!
"Prime Minister, were the defense lines built in the provinces in the past also funded by the kingdom?"
"I am concerned, "Caesar IV asked.
If we had to describe Alpha Kingdom's current financial situation in one word, it would be: poor!
Very poor!
Extremely poor!
Anything related to money was a headache for Caesar IV. Even the recent assassination of Prince Claude was far less troublesome than the kingdom's financial problems.
Ultimately, since it was on his own territory, Caesar IV was still capable of ascertaining the fate of Prince Claude.
Since the person didn't die, the follow-up issues can be discussed.
In a few days, a Heretical Cult will claim responsibility for the assassination, followed by the Kingdom's forces launching a crackdown, and finally, the two sides will exchange benefits.
The procedures are all readily available; just prepare according to the template. If you do the superficial work well and offer some compensation, the matter is considered closed.
In contrast, the fiscal deficit is the unsolvable problem.
The recently concluded funeral of the old King and the ascension of the new king are also huge expenses, further exacerbating the already strained kingdom finances.
"Your Majesty, the kingdom has no clear laws or regulations in this regard."
However, in the past, when each province built its defenses, the kingdom would provide subsidies of varying amounts based on the actual situation.
Apart from the larger subsidies in Northern Frontier, subsidies in other provinces are mostly symbolic, with tax reductions or exemptions being the primary form of compensation.
No sooner had the Duke Newfoundland finished speaking than the Minister of Finance Marquis Delgado, stepped forward and refused without hesitation. "No! Taxes cannot be reduced or exempted now!"
Your Majesty, due to the impact of the war, tax revenue in the northern region of the kingdom has been drastically reduced, especially in the seven newly recovered provinces, where not a single penny of tax revenue has been collected.
The kingdom's current finances mainly rely on the central and southern provinces. The southern provinces that are now proposing to build a defensive line are all major tax-paying provinces of the kingdom, accounting for roughly one-third of the kingdom's fiscal revenue.
Especially with the recently imposed repayment tax, these provinces alone contributed nearly 40%. If they were exempted from taxation, the kingdom's finances would immediately collapse!
The data doesn't lie; because of the ability to collect tariffs, the fiscal contribution of border provinces is significantly higher than that of inland provinces.
They're already short of money; if they cut their most important source of revenue, it would be a problem if they didn't go bankrupt.
"The financial problem is indeed serious, but we also have to consider the proposals from various provinces to build defense lines."
With the changing international situation, these provinces have transformed from a rear area into a new strategic location for national defense.
Even if the treasury can't provide the funds, we still need to make a gesture to appease the local nobles, and ideally encourage them to complete the defense line construction on their own.
Duke Affierro made the suggestion, albeit reluctantly.
Frankly, this proposal is really difficult.
However, there was no other way. As the Minister of Military Affairs of the kingdom, with the national treasury empty, he could only rely on local nobles to complete the construction of national defense projects.
In theory, they could also convene Noble Council to raise funds for construction from across the country.
Unfortunately, the kingdom's major provinces are currently under considerable financial pressure and are still in the economic recovery phase. Continuing to increase taxes would only force minor nobles into bankruptcy.
"Are these provinces capable of completing these projects independently?"
"I am concerned, "Caesar IV asked.
To defend our homeland, we need not fear that the nobles of this province will not contribute, but rather that they will be powerless to do so.
"Your Majesty, it depends on the determination of those powerful noble families. The provinces where defensive lines need to be built are mostly quite wealthy."
If a few powerful noble families are willing to invest heavily and pool the resources of the entire province to build a solid defensive line, it shouldn't be a big problem.
Given that the current threat of war is not significant, we still have enough time to allow them to determine the construction schedule based on the actual situation.
Marquis Delgado replied hastily.
He did his best to save the kingdom's finances. Now, we must save wherever we can, and we must also try our best to save wherever we can't.
In order to cut expenses, the kingdom's officials can only receive 70% of their salaries, and even the King's annuity has been suspended by the Treasury Department.
Of course, this wasn't stopped by the Marquis Delgado, but rather proposed by Caesar III during his reign to unite the people.
Funding cuts for various activities were even more severe. The most typical example was the convening of the Noble Council, which resulted in a sharp decline in the standard of food provided by the kingdom.
The original monster meat, spices, delicacies from land and sea, and various snacks and fruits available all day long are now all gone, leaving only ordinary beef and mutton and bread.
The most direct consequence was that the nobles stopped coming to dine and started preparing their own private meals.
Upon seeing this, Marquis Delgado was not angry at all. Instead, he smiled and cut that part of the budget, forcing the council to cancel the food supply.
There are many similar shady dealings. Rumors circulate that the Marquis Delgado is obsessed with money.
Such drastic cost-cutting measures were merely enough to ensure the kingdom's finances could continue operating.
"Prime Minister, what do you think?"
Caesar IV asked, quite intrigued.
It's not that I don't trust them, it's just that my own Finance Minister has so many ingenious ways to save money. Most of them have been successful, but when you do too many of them, mistakes are bound to happen.
"Your Majesty, rest assured, I will handle this matter. As it involves my own safety, I am not afraid that they will not do their best."
Unlike the Northern Frontier, the southern border does not require transporting grain and fodder over long distances, so the cost of building defenses here is not as exorbitant.
However, relying solely on their own strength, some provinces still face certain difficulties in constructing comprehensive defensive fortifications and must coordinate support from other provinces.
The Duke Newfoundland said, forcing himself to speak.
Undoubtedly, coordinating relations between all parties is a tough and arduous task, but there's no other way. If the prime minister doesn't step up, the King has to do it himself; no one else is up to the task.
Although Caesar IV has performed well since ascending to the throne, whether he has the ability to coordinate relations with all parties remains to be seen.
If things go wrong, the cleanup will only be more difficult. It's better to do it myself; with my prestige as prime minister for so many years, people will still have to give me some face.
Seeing Griffon Cavalry flying overhead, Prince Claude, who was wandering in the garden, hurriedly returned to his sickroom.
If you're claiming to be recovering from an injury, then you need to act like you are. How can you extort money from someone if they see you acting perfectly healthy and energetic?
Politics is the most magical thing. If the Alpha Kingdom is really prepared to turn against the Black Forest Kingdom, it might even turn around and accuse him of orchestrating the assassination.
Of course, the probability of such a thing happening is very low. The assassins infiltrated as nobles of the Alpha Kingdom, and that alone makes it impossible for them to shake off the blame, no matter how they try.
The nobles of the Aslant Continent are very conscious of their image, and no one wants to wear the label of a rogue nation.
Wars waged for honor are commonplace. To renege on such a decision is tantamount to directly declaring war on the Black Forest Kingdom.
"Count Tatala, how are the talks with the Alpha people going?"
Prince Claude asked with concern.
He's stuck indoors all day, and even strolling in the garden makes him worry about being spotted by the Griffon Cavalry overhead. And these past few days, there seem to be an unusually large number of Griffon Cavalry above him.
When someone was sent to inquire, the reply was that patrols had been strengthened specifically to protect his personal safety.
"Your Highness, progress is not going well. According to the intelligence we have gathered, the Alpha Kingdom has begun preparations for war, and several southern provinces are preparing to build defensive lines."
The Southeast Province is currently making the most progress; they have reportedly completed the initial planning for their defense line. The plan involves 300,000 laborers and three years of construction to build an ironclad defense line...
Before Count Tatala could finish speaking, Prince Claude interrupted, "The Alpha people have gone mad!"
We did nothing, and they started preparing for war. They just finished a war with the Beastfolk; where did they get the funds to undertake these projects?
It wasn't that he was overreacting; the Alpha Kingdom's reaction was truly abnormal. War is never something that can be started immediately just by talking about it.
Let alone two great powers, even if it were two noble families challenging each other, they would need to prepare for a period of time.
Usually, a time and battlefield agreed upon by both sides are chosen, and only after everyone is ready do they lead their teams to fight.
If something comes up, a postponement can be unilaterally announced. Most of the time, this request is accepted.
While wars between nations are not so governed by rules, there are still many things that need to be prepared.
If there is no need for a nationwide conscription, then it is very simple: prepare strategic resources, and the King can send them to the battlefield at his command.
If it is necessary to mobilize the private armies of nobles to participate in the war, things become complicated. In the event of a foreign invasion, the mobilization speed is faster, and it is estimated that it will take about a few months to complete.
If we were to launch a war against external forces, it would take at least six months just to coordinate the relations between the various lords within the country, and at least another six months to prepare strategic materials and recruit troops.
This is still in theory; in practice, even more problems will arise. After all, the Black Forest Kingdom has not fought a major war requiring nationwide mobilization for over a hundred years.
Only a few countries that directly confront other races have truly high mobilization efficiency. The specific mobilization efficiency depends entirely on the frequency of wars with other races.
This is why many countries, despite having advantages in population, economy, number of skilled individuals, and weaponry, lag behind others in the ranking of powerful nations on the mainland.
"Your Highness, I have heard that the expenses required for building the defense line in the Southeast Province will be entirely raised by the local government itself."
The fundraising meeting will be held tomorrow at the Dalton Family's residence. Whether it's just a bluff or if construction is truly about to begin, we'll find out after tomorrow's meeting.
However, the two most powerful figures in the Southeast Province, Governor Pierce and Count Hudson, were the driving forces behind the project. Once they were determined to build it, any opposition from others was ineffective.
Count Tatala explained patiently.
Mindset determines outcome.
The nobles of the Alpha Kingdom currently adhere to the extreme law of the jungle, which is to fight against the Beastfolk. If they let their guard down, they will be killed and their entire clan will be wiped out.
Subconscious subjective influences made them overlook the fact that the enemy had changed. They were still using the same mindset they had used to deal with Beastfolk to deal with the current international situation, naively treating their neighbors as potential enemies.
This misconception, in Prince Claude's eyes, meant that the Alpha people were all lunatics.