Along the way, Guo Kang chatted a lot with the new officer and got a general understanding of his situation.
According to him, he previously served as the quartermaster adjutant in the "Hammer of Basil". In fact, I just help to buy things here and there.
Previously, he came to Dadu to study. As a result, things haven't been going well since we got here. We ran out of money and money and couldn't successfully settle down. Fortunately, at that time, the army was recruiting logistics officers temporarily as usual.
He had learned mathematics in Nuremberg before, and also ran errands with his uncle who ran an armor store, so he had relevant experience. Therefore, I was successfully hired.
The Purple Horde Khanate has a tradition that after the direction of the expedition is determined, some people who have a better understanding of the local situation will be recruited from the entire army. Because manpower is often insufficient, additional personnel are often recruited as supplements.
The order left by Guo Gai held that when marching in non-native areas, honest and rigorous quartermasters should be appointed. When conditions permit, trustworthy people should be found to act as deputies, instead of letting the soldiers go directly to private procurement.
Because letting everyone go out and collect food individually is likely to cause chaos. There are always people who don't want to spend money to buy, but want to swallow up the funds and get them locally for nothing. This goes against the original intention of stabilizing order and creating a good image.
Therefore, it is better to choose reliable people, focus on purchasing, and then find some people who are familiar with the local market and other specific conditions to help avoid confusion and prevent being deceived.
Of course, the quartermaster is a fat employee, and there will definitely be people who take bribes and take advantage of him. But in reality, it is already good to maintain a system that is relatively not too bad. After all, dealing with a quartermaster is much easier than dealing with a group of random soldiers.
Due to operational needs, the quartermaster responsible for procurement often also plays the role of spy and scout. They must enter enemy-occupied areas before the main army and understand the local reserves of various supplies. If possible, contact the locals again, negotiate prices, and prepare supplies in advance.
People in many places do not have a strong sense of belonging to their lords. Local people are often very surprised when they meet someone who is willing to give money, and they are happy to cooperate and sell supplies to these "enemies".
About ten years ago, when the Purple Horde attacked Alemanni, a phenomenon known as the "Indulgence Belt" appeared. The Roman Catholic Church later discovered that sales of indulgences increased near the march route of the Purple Horde.
The church specially sent people to investigate and found out that the locals were keen on selling supplies to the Purple Horde Khanate and gained a lot of money. Afterwards, some people felt that it was not good to collude with heretics in this way, so they had an idea and bought indulgences to offset this small and unavoidable mistake, and then they could live with peace of mind.
I don’t know which great genius invented this method, and it spread widely for a while.
Of course, the church was happy to see the results and did not ask the lords to strictly control heresy. I just want to remind everyone that in this case, you should buy the corresponding gear instead of just finding the cheapest one. Make no mistake here.
Over the years, this system has become increasingly easy to use. Due to their good reputation, legion quartermasters can sometimes even appear in the hinterland of the Shinra, reserve supplies hoarded by merchants in advance, and secretly transport them from enemy-controlled areas to our own front lines.
The HRE and the great nobles of Hungary once formulated strict rules to prohibit such behavior. However, due to the lack of local management, it is still difficult to achieve practical results. Some cities that didn't like nobles in the first place even went so far as to take advantage of the threat of the Purple Horde Khanate and openly confront the local lords, causing even greater trouble.
Therefore, this system is considered a relatively important part of the current war. The selection of quartermasters and deputies is also very important.
Lucas's position is likely to involve entering behind enemy lines, so he needs reliable locals with certain knowledge. Although there is some danger, this is indeed a fast track for advancement - after only one battle, he is expected to become a formal officer, so he was recommended here.
Guo Kang felt that with this qualification, it should be enough to lead a group of new recruits. And let the Alemanni train the Slavs... Since Cao Jian said that he had found qualified soldiers, he should at least be able to understand the general password of the legion.
Thinking of this, he felt relieved.
When he arrived at the entrance of the training ground, he not only saw Cao Jian, but also found Joanna there.
"Why are you here?" Guo Kang asked curiously: "Are you still prepared to sponsor this army? No. Our army here does not require private funding."
This sentence seems to be common sense, but these days, it is an exception.
Most of the troops do not belong to the local political power, but are paid and hired. If someone is willing to provide sponsorship, then of course everyone will be happy.
Even the specially formed national army basically adopts a contracting system. A monarch who prepares to organize an army will appoint an officer and give him full authority to handle recruitment, training and other matters. The appointees were more mercenary managers than state officers. His job is to take the money and build an army for his employer's use.
Due to very rough management during this period, the funds contracted by officers often did not match their actual expenses. Many times they will deliberately withhold military pay and supplies, or even falsely report the number of troops, in order to line their own pockets;
But there are also times when these funds are really not enough, so you can only provide money yourself - of course, the monarch usually gives other rewards such as titles and real estate. If that doesn't work, you can still grab it yourself after organizing an army.
In the eyes of the Central Plains people, this situation is almost entirely typical of a soldier. If he doesn't wear a yellow robe, he will not be able to let his employer down. However, it has been operating here for hundreds of years, and will continue to operate for hundreds of years in the future. For such a long time, there have been very few accidents, which shows that the safety is still sufficient.
This contracting system was used until around the 19th century. The latest one was used in the UK in 1871. It is even compatible with the rank system and unified training of modern armies.
For example, during this period, British officers were basically purchased. Some popular positions also require bidding. There are also people who are promoted through seniority and merit, but they will be looked down upon by the officers who bought their posts, thinking that this is not in line with the status of a gentleman. And many times, just having money is not enough. Without noble status, no matter how much money you have, you can't buy it.
Although this kind of method may be directly regarded as a sign of national destruction in Seris, relying on this organizational method, not only did they not perish, but they also conquered the whole world in hundreds of years.
Guo Kang sometimes feels that combat effectiveness and military system have nothing to do with each other...
However, Joanna shook her head and said that was not what he thought.
"I just heard that you want to recruit and train a new army, so I came here to take a look." Joanna said calmly: "Didn't I agree before that I would come back to you if anything happens? Now I want to see if I can help. Is that okay?”
Guo Kang didn't know how she could help with this kind of thing. He looked at Cao Jian and found that the other person also had a confused look on his face, and he didn't seem to recognize Joanna. However, Joanna looked confident, as if something really happened and she needed to take this opportunity to tell him.
Guo Kang thought for a while and felt that this was not a formal exercise and it would be okay to show her around, so he nodded.
(End of chapter)
