The lines on the page are simple and stable, and handwritten annotations are distributed in the margins, recording the completed sweep range and the direction of the uncovered areas.
He flattened the paper on the table. He did not rush to write down a new entry, nor did he immediately move his eyes to the movement outside the tent. He just let the lines occupy his field of vision for a short period of time, and then placed the page back on the side of the table.
In the distance, the sound of the Demon Dragon Legion cleaning the ground came through the canvas of the tent. It had weakened a lot through a layer of fabric and turned into a vague and continuous background rhythm.
Food distribution in the camp did not stop because of the issuance of the warrant.
Shortly after Douglas left, the officer in charge of meals had begun to adjust today's supply in accordance with the new rationing standards.
The soldiers still received enough dry rations and dried meat, but the portions were reduced and filled with dried beans and grains.
No one complained, because everyone saw the scale of consumption by those Demon Dragon yesterday when they cleared the front line, and also saw the disproportionate state between the size and the amount of food consumed by those huge bodies when they returned to the camp to eat after the battle.
They know very well that as long as they can maintain the mobility of the Demon Dragon Legion, the security of the camp can continue to be maintained.
Demon Dragon Legion does consume a lot of food. Every veteran who has experienced many supply cycles has intuitive experience of this during a long time together. But for this island, it is another matter without them.
The reputation of Redd has been quite firmly maintained in the nine-seater Free Cities.
Since conquering those City-Statess, he has almost never personally participated in the daily management of City-Statess, nor has he ever participated in specific affairs of justice, trade or municipal construction.
Not to mention leaving no room for businessmen and parliament to move, his control method is one-way-regularly issuing orders and requesting supplies and funds.
Then repeat the same process the next time you need it, leaving any complaints and dissatisfaction generated in the process to the people on the ground to digest by themselves.
The talk about him in the tavern never cooled down.
Some people use the title "Dragon King Tyrant" to refer to him, and some people mix his name with a series of rumors about massacres, burning of cities, and forced labor, which have been repeatedly reinforced in various legends.
Those rumors continue to flow in the streets of Free Cities, rolling back and forth between the port bazaar, the cargo deck and the garrison camp in various accents and variations.
His reputation has continued to precipitate in these cycles, and has reached an almost solid state, with almost no new news that can significantly change its shape.
Redd almost doesn't care at all.
He never sent anyone to suppress the rumors, never asked any City-States to close the tavern or forbid the crew to talk about him during their breaks.
Nor has it ever been traced who were those who drunkenly described in exaggerated tones how he burned the entire port into craters while bombarding the city walls at Volantis.
Because in his view, those speeches themselves do not have enough weight to interfere with the plans he is advancing, and he does not need to suppress speech to gain power.
Those voices and opinions from the bottom will not make his warehouse full, nor will they shorten the Demon Dragon Legion's sailing time, nor will they make the tunnels of the underground mines close on their own.
In his opinion, as long as the instructions can be executed and the materials can arrive at the loading and unloading point as expected, those sounds are just a layer of foam floating on the surface. There is no need to deliberately shake it off, and it will naturally recede in the next wave of tide.
Douglas once discussed this issue in private.
At that time, they had just gotten off a transport ship that was unloading cargo, and the cargo trestle at the port was burning hot in the afternoon sun.
Douglas was walking slightly to the right behind Redd, holding the City-States summary report he had just received in his hand. His tone was deliberately lighter,
As if to confirm once again Redd's tolerance for such things, he tentatively described the various rumors about himself that were circulating among City-States, saying that some of the words used in them were indeed a bit excessive.
Redd's response was to ask without looking back, "Can the person who scolded me help us feed the dragon?" Douglas thought for a while and swallowed the rest of the words. He never took the initiative to mention such things again.
Now that this grain requisition warrant has been sent back, the civilians and grassroots officials in the nine-seat City-States are expected to have to scold them for a while.
The newly appointed governors are in the period when they are most eager to express themselves. They need to show Redd that they will not be replaced, and at the same time, they cannot let the city fall into a substantial food shortage, causing public dissatisfaction to accumulate to the point where it cannot be dealt with.
Douglas mentally simulated a series of operations that the governors would take after receiving the warrant and the possible chain reactions - first use the inventory to cushion, and if there is not enough, then purchase more from surrounding provinces and manor owners.
If it is not enough, a temporary tax will be levied to transfer the pressure to the next level, while the slaves will continue to work in their respective positions without causing any fluctuations that can reach the ears of Redd.
He thought that in order to save their positions and lives, the governors would do their best to fulfill the requirements of the order.
Because the last batch of executed governors made it clear enough that those who couldn't do it would lose their chairs, and much more than just a chair and a position - they would be replaced entirely.
This fear has been enough to push the new governors to piece together enough supplies in the shortest possible time, even if the process requires going through the entire City-States inventory and supply lines, they will not hesitate.
Redd stayed in the tent for about an hour, during which time orderlies and team officers came one after another to report on the progress of the cleanup.
He listened to every report, marked a new line of advance on the marked map on the table, and then added its approximate location on the map after noticing an unmarked ridge, and wrote down a few text descriptions about the terrain relief in the blank space below.
Judging from the feedback from those returning Demon Dragon and ground troops, as the advancement distance lengthens, the time required for cleanup and fuel consumption also increase simultaneously.
The first batch of departure Demon Dragon has begun its return journey.
They turned back along their predetermined flight routes, and some gradually descended when they reached the outskirts of the camp, folded their wings, landed on the side of the hill and in the open space at the edge of the camp, and began to take meat from the storage area.
They eat very quickly, their throats continue to shrink, and the bones and meat are swallowed into their bellies. During this period, they hardly raise their heads and do not compete with their surrounding companions.
Consumption continues, and the upper levels of the food pile are being lowered layer by layer at a visible speed.