Military Reorganization

Once the dock cranes were put into use, Victor did not waste much time. He arranged for Powell to complete the Weaponry Workshop's factory buildings in Riverside Village as soon as possible, allowing it to begin normal operations.

He assigned the master craftsmen at the Weaponry Workshop three tasks. First, they were to continue improving and producing dock cranes in an effort to increase cargo-handling efficiency. Second, they were to produce a batch of iron arrowheads suitable for Armor-Piercing Crossbows; after all, using Armor-Piercing Arrows on barbarians was truly wasteful. Third, they were to upgrade the tools used by the brickworks and charcoal plant, especially the brick-making equipment, creating a brick-making machine that anyone could operate independently so even half-grown children could work.

After finishing these arrangements, Victor went straight to Captain Jack and told him how important the cargo being sent back this time was. He ordered him to deliver it, along with his letter, to Former Baron Wembley at the earliest opportunity.

He also found James. Victor took the initiative to assign the two newly added cargo ships to James's fleet so they could return to Blue Rose Territory together this time and transport the remaining supplies and serfs over.

Victor also asked the other stewards to give him brief reports. Based on the progress of each project, he gave them new work requirements and demanded that, once this new batch of supplies arrived, they accelerate their work and ensure the targets were completed before winter.

By the time Victor finished dealing with these miscellaneous matters, two days had already passed. Captain Jack had already departed with the fleet to carry out the final transport mission before winter.

Victor officially convened a meeting on military reorganization, summoning all the territory's current military commanders. He brought out the military restructuring plan that Number 1 had previously drafted using the Calculation Module, along with a signal-flag manual and a frontier war reward plan, for on-site review and revisions.

No one had any objections to the signal-flag manual. After all, none of them were professionals, while Victor's manual looked highly practical and was not complicated. It would greatly aid military command and the transmission of information.

"Since no one has any objections to this manual, take a copy back and study it. As commanders, you must understand the meaning of every signal-flag movement. I will test you afterward, and anyone who fails will have one month's pay withheld."

James and Ron immediately groaned, while Santos, Jack, and Jackson said they would definitely learn it as quickly as possible.

Victor neither approved nor disapproved. He would withhold their pay if he said he would. James and his troops had always been fighting for Victor, so Victor had always covered the maintenance and logistics costs of his army and paid James a salary. That was why James had never returned to his own territory.

As for the frontier war reward plan, it was meant to redeem the rewards earned through the military achievements of officers and soldiers who had led their troops to victory during this period. It was also intended to establish a sustainable reward system, since Two Rivers Territory would be involved in frequent battles in the future.

"My lord, I noticed that the rewards are mainly land grants, and all of it is good land. Isn't the monetary reward too little?" Santos asked.

"There is no shortage of land here, and this land truly is good. But it still needs to be developed. In the short term, as long as the cultivation of land in Two Rivers Territory can meet the basic needs of the population, that will be enough. We will not devote too much manpower to it. Many of our soldiers come from serf families. My promise to them is to free their families and grant them land, giving them a foundation to stand on."

"As for money, in the coming years the territory will need to spend a great deal on all kinds of materials for construction and development. My selfish wish is to reduce monetary rewards so the territory can retain more funds."

"Then I have no objections. I agree with this plan." Santos accepted Victor's explanation and directly voted in favor. The others had no objections either, and the plan was unanimously approved.

"Good. Before the reorganization, I will hold a commendation ceremony and distribute the soldiers' rewards on the spot. That should also reduce their resistance when we adjust the organization."

"Next is this restructuring plan. I am not satisfied with the current organization of our forces, especially since we are severely lacking in functional units. This is a good opportunity to add standard-bearer positions and improve command efficiency."

The plan was fairly simple. The territory now had a thousand pure professional soldiers, and with a certain number of auxiliary troops, it could fully establish a standard regiment.

Victor believed this force should establish a regimental headquarters suited to the regiment's actual needs. He directly appointed himself Regimental Commander, with Ron as deputy regimental commander and commander of the First Cavalry Detachment.

Victor named this regiment the Two Rivers Territory First Regiment. It would consist of four combat detachments and one logistics detachment: the First Cavalry Detachment, commanded by Ron with Jackson as deputy commander, consisting of four cavalry companies of one hundred men each. Every company would contain a fifty-man regular army squad and a fifty-man barbarian Light Cavalry or mounted auxiliary squad. Squads would be divided into units of ten, with one man selected as unit leader. Each squad would have two standard-bearers and two messengers; the Second Cavalry Detachment, commanded by James with Jack as deputy commander, would be organized similarly to the First Cavalry Detachment, except that two of its companies would have fifty chainmail cavalrymen and fifty Iron Knights heavy cavalrymen as their main force; the First Infantry Detachment, commanded by Santos with Solon as deputy commander, recommended by Santos and formerly the captain of the Pikemen, would consist of four infantry companies of one hundred men each, likewise composed of fifty regular soldiers and fifty auxiliary soldiers, with two pikemen companies and two archer companies; the Second Infantry Detachment would be temporarily commanded by Victor, with Fola as deputy commander, recommended by Santos and formerly the captain of the crossbowmen, and would consist of four companies: two pikemen companies and two crossbowmen companies.

The logistics detachment would have three companies: a supply convoy responsible for transporting food, weapons, armor, and other materials, with two hundred personnel; a medical unit, including military doctors and supporting medics responsible for battlefield treatment, with roughly one hundred personnel; and an engineering unit responsible for building and maintaining defensive works, with two hundred personnel.

At the same time, Victor incorporated his Guard Squad into the regimental headquarters, making it part of the regiment's standing force.

This reorganization plan might temporarily have some negative effects on the territory's army. During the process, it would weaken the troops' combat strength. However, Victor believed that once the reorganization was completed, the soldiers adapted, and they underwent a period of training, the army's combat power would certainly improve.

After everyone expressed no objections to the plan, Victor made the final decision. Three days later, on October 9, they would hold a victory celebration and announce the reorganization plan.