Volume 4: Hot! The whole world is a warring state Chapter 762: Ming Dynasty Senior Spy
"Teacher, I'm back."
"Oh, Your Excellency, has the time for sending troops been determined for this Roman summit?"
"It's settled. The alliance has decided to send troops after the Christmas holidays in 1646. The specific date is January 3, 1647."
"You are in such a hurry. Come on." Richelieu took out a map of Europe and a map of India and said, "Tell me in detail the alliance's marching plan and troop deployment."
"Okay, teacher." Louis XIII sat down and pointed to the map of Europe. "As you know, in this defense of India, in terms of the army, except for the fifteen divisions in North America, the remaining seventy-five divisions of the alliance will all be deployed, with a total force of 1.125 million. Among them, the Castilians account for about 225,000, the Germanic people in the former Holy Roman Empire account for 400,000, and the various countries in the former Kingdom of France account for 180,000. The rest are 90,000 from Denmark, Sweden and other Nordic countries, 60,000 from Britain, 60,000 from Poland and Lithuania, and the remaining 110,000 are all black slaves from Africa."
"Eh? Didn't you tell me before that Osvalles secretly wanted to turn one-fifth of the army into slaves?"
"That's what the overworked Spanish Prime Minister thought, but the reality is that as long as the black slaves are well fed and watered, they are strong, but they are much slower to train than our white European soldiers. Therefore, there are still about 120,000 black slaves who have not completed basic military training, and they have been incorporated into the reserve."
"Reserve?"
"Yes, the reserve." Louis XIII gnashed his teeth a little when he said this: "You know, this so-called Grand Duchy of Paris is actually the French Island of the former Capetian Dynasty. The population in the territory is only three million, and the young and strong men aged between 18 and 30 are no more than 400,000. According to Philip's request, I have handed over two divisions, a total of 30,000 people. And he said at the Rome Summit this time. In addition to the more than one million army troops that are about to set off for India, the whole of Europe must prepare more than one million reserves. And my Grand Duchy of Paris has been assigned the task of forming two reserve divisions. Together, this is four divisions, a total of 60,000 people.
After these 60,000 young men were withdrawn, many lands in my Grand Duchy of Paris lacked people to cultivate them, many shops lacked clerks or apprentices, and the economy of the entire country inevitably fell into decline. But this crazy guy also said that this batch of reservists was only the first batch, and there would be a second batch later. And the age limit would be relaxed to 40 years old. God, if another 60,000 people were withdrawn from the Grand Duchy, I think my time as a duke would be almost over. "
"This war will be unprecedentedly cruel." After making a cross on his chest, Richelieu said, "The first batch of troops for the army will be 1.12 million. What about the navy?"
"In terms of the navy, all seven of Spain's ten battleships except for the three in America will participate in the war. Philip reported that there are thirty heavy cruisers, and more than a hundred light cruisers and destroyers. As for transport ships, the alliance has mobilized a total of 5,000 transport ships of various sizes this time. It is said that if these 5,000 transport ships are dispatched at the same time, the tonnage transported at a time will exceed 5 million tons."
"What about the naval reserves? I mean the new ships in the Spanish shipyards."
"Sorry, teacher, I really don't know about this." Louis XIII touched his face embarrassedly: "You know, since the establishment of the European Union, Spain has basically treated all countries in the alliance equally in terms of the army. But the navy... they don't let us participate. And at this summit, he didn't mention the construction of subsequent warships."
"Hey, in this decisive battle, both sides sent more than one million troops to fight far away from their homeland, which requires extremely high logistics. So, on the surface, it looks like a large-scale land showdown, but in fact, the key to the success or failure of the war lies in the sea. It seems that we have to take some risks and activate the swallows sent by Gloria."
"That is your business, Master, for I am leaving Paris for Alexandria soon."
"Why? You want to go to war too?"
"Yes, after all, Philip will go into battle personally this time. Almost all of us, the Grand Dukes, Princes, etc., will also go into battle."
"The Allied forces are gathering in Egypt this time?"
"Yes, first gather in Egypt, then pass through the Suez Canal in batches, and finally arrive in India. Philip's requirement is that all of these more than one million troops must be deployed in India before June 1, 1647 at the latest."
"June 1st? So early? The Chinese emperor told me that the troops would be dispatched in September. After all, India is too hot in June."
"There's nothing we can do, teacher. Europe still has a small population. So, although everyone knows that Indians are not good at fighting, they are still human beings after all. Therefore, Philip also asked the current Governor-General of India, Mr. Wallenstein, to train 20 Indian divisions. According to the information I learned from private communication with Wallenstein , Wallenstein's evaluation of these Indians is that they are much better than blacks in learning ability, but much worse in bravery in fighting."
"Humph, such soldiers can only fight in favorable battles. If they are really asked to fight in a difficult battle against unfavorable winds, they will most likely collapse at the first touch. The Ming Dynasty was badly betrayed by these guys in India, but Philip still refuses to learn his lesson. Sooner or later, he will pay the price for employing these Indians." After saying this sarcastically, Richelieu added: "Philip even employed Indians. It makes no sense for him not to involve Osman, right?"
"Yes, teacher." Louis XIII laughed gloatingly: "According to the information reported at the Rome Summit, the Ottomans have already begun a nationwide mobilization in order to preserve their Pakistan. It is said that the Ottomans will deploy 35 divisions and 525,000 troops in the army for this decisive battle."
"Given the Ottoman population, and considering that they had to leave enough troops to suppress and monitor the Persians, this investment can be considered a national effort."
"That's not all, Master. According to Philip, the Ottoman navy will also participate in the war. They will send two battleships and five heavy cruisers."
"Hiss~ When did the Ottomans have battleships?"
"They did a good job of concealing intelligence in this regard. Even Philip probably only found out about it recently. I guess the Ottomans didn't build their fleet in the Black Sea shipyard, but in the Persian Gulf."
"It's possible. Well, if you count it this way, the EU and Ottoman armies, plus the Indians, total 1.95 million people. The navy consists of nine battleships and thirty-five heavy cruisers. Louis, as the Grand Duke, you can't just go to India like this, right? How many troops can you command?"
"There are only three divisions under my command. These three divisions are organized into the Fifteenth Army, and I am the Lieutenant General. In addition to the two divisions of the Grand Duchy, there is also a division composed mainly of Bretons under my jurisdiction."
"Three divisions are organized into one army? Doesn't that mean there are 65 armies?"
"That's not necessarily true. In general, the 130 divisions and 1.95 million people who went to India to fight were divided into five groups. The first group was the 15 divisions of the Ottomans, who were stationed in Pakistan first. Then, after the main force of the Chinese entered India, they would head north and attack the northwestern provinces of mainland China.
The second group consisted of twenty Ottoman divisions. Their mission was to enter the Ganges Delta and defend against possible enemies coming from the Rakhine Mountains in Burma. The commander was Boris, a Russian who became famous in the battle of Alexandria many years ago. This guy was good at defense but not at success. So after Philip discussed with the Ottoman Grand Vizier, he assigned him the task of defense.
The Third Group has fifty divisions, all of which are European troops. The commander is Durrani, and they are mainly distributed in the Ganges River Basin. Generally speaking, the Chinese can only land on the east side of the Indian Peninsula through the Bay of Bengal for a large-scale landing. After landing, in order to maintain the logistics of a large-scale corps, the Ganges River must be used. Therefore, the main task of the Durrani Group is to resist step by step along the Ganges River Basin, slowly retreat, and wait for an opportunity to counterattack after stretching the Chinese supply line.
The Fourth Group has 25 divisions, all of which are European troops. The commander is Henry (Grand Conde), and they are mainly distributed in the Eastern Ghats of the Deccan Plateau. Philip believes that due to logistical pressure, the Chinese will not have too many troops even if they land on the southeast side of the Indian Peninsula. Therefore, Henry's 25 divisions are enough. Ah, teacher, the 15th Army I led was assigned to this group.
The fifth group is 20 Indian divisions, with Wallenstein as the commander. They are stationed in Delhi. Well, this group, as some harsh nobles said after the meeting, is a corpse waiting to be decomposed. If any of the first four groups suffers serious damage, this group will be dismantled to replenish it. "
"Very good." Louis XIII kept talking while Richelieu kept taking notes. When Louis XIII finished speaking, Richelieu's pen stopped almost at the same time.
"Louis, with this detailed intelligence, Ming has a better chance of winning this decisive battle. It's a pity that your troops are not in Durrenni's main army. Otherwise, if you suddenly led your troops to give up the defense line when the main armies of both sides were fighting fiercely..."
"Teacher, that's impossible. I can only do this for the Chinese emperor. After all, China is too far away, and Spain is too close. In order for the remaining Duchy of Paris to survive and retain the hope of reviving France, I will never make my position public on the distant Indian battlefield. And to be honest, after the two Ottoman battleships joined the battle, I lack confidence that the Chinese can win the naval battle. You just mentioned that the naval battle is the key to this large-scale battle."
"Yes, but no matter what, as long as this information can be passed to Ming in time, Ming's chances of winning will increase. And as long as Ming wins this decisive battle, France's resurrection is inevitable!"
"It is up to you, teacher, to pass this information to the Chinese emperor. Next." Louis XIII stretched lazily: "I have to go and spend time with my family. After all, it is November of 1646. In at most half a month, I will leave."
After Louis XIII left, Richelieu gently rang a bell that was very secretly located.
Soon, a door on the wall was inexplicably opened, and a very ordinary-looking man with no special features walked calmly in front of Richelieu.
"You heard everything I just said, right? Do everything you can to get this information back to Ming as soon as possible."
"yes."
"Also activate the swallows that Gloria sent over, and have them try to find out from the senior officers of the Spanish Navy what new large ships the other navy is building."
"yes."
"How long will it take to pass the message back now? Is it safe for our personnel to travel back and forth?"
"Your Excellency, Viscount (Richelieu's title in the Ming Dynasty), now, relying on the smuggling route of silk, porcelain and tea from the Ming Dynasty to the Ottoman Empire to Europe, it is generally convenient for our intelligence personnel to return to the Ming Dynasty. If everything goes well, we can reach Xinjiang, China in three months at most. However, once the war starts, this route will not be easy to travel. In addition, our colleagues in Spain have sent news that as the war approaches, the Spanish intelligence agencies have also strengthened their counter-espionage efforts."
"Hey, you guys need to gain merits and status in Ming Dynasty, and I need to restore my country. It's not that easy. In short, no matter what, we must ensure that this information is transmitted back to Ming Dynasty without omissions, complete, and quickly!"
“I will definitely live up to your trust!”
