You were made to farm, and now you're the emperor of an empire?

Chapter 370 Why are you going so deep into the bottom lane?
Ed and a group of soldiers pulled the cart along the road beside the fields.

The road was originally two ruts left by wheels crushing through weeds. It was rugged and winding, with weeds on both sides reaching half a person's height, and the road conditions were terrible.

It has been greatly improved; the roads are smooth and the visibility is good.

Every day, people carry sickles and hoes, walking barefoot on solid roads to weed the fields—most of them are women. Tens of thousands of women have to take care of more than 200,000 acres of land, while men have to do more arduous labor.

Some weeds died after being plowed and exposed to the sun, but others continued to take root and sprout, stealing nutrients from crops like insects.

You hoe one patch today, and another one grows back tomorrow; the weeds are endless, it's infuriating.

Farmers are an extremely resilient and patient group. Their hatred for the land is also the most enduring. They grit their teeth and fight against the barren land day after day, year after year, generation after generation.

Ed encountered an obstacle when they ran into a convoy of vehicles that had come to plant cotton.

The cottonseed was processed; it had been soaked in water and mixed with wood ash. The land on both sides of the road was raked.

A group of about a hundred peasant women gathered around the instructor from the Ministry of Agriculture and were talking to him.

The latter was reminded by someone and turned around to see a group of soldiers in military uniforms pulling a cart over. The leader was a battalion commander with several steel medals on his shoulders, personally awarded by His Highness Roman, clearly a veteran of many battles.

The instructor strode over, greeted Ed first, and then, like a traffic policeman, waved his arms vigorously, constantly urging the group of peasant women and vehicles to move aside.

The stone-paved road was five meters wide, and the carts on both sides were two meters wide. The agricultural instructor untied the reins, led the ox to the edge of the field, and pushed the cart. After a while, they finally managed to squeeze out space for the cart to pass.

"Thank you for your cooperation!" Ed raised his right fist and gave a crisp military salute.

"You are the one who has worked hard, gentlemen." The agricultural instructor hurriedly returned the greeting, though his movements were not quite standard.

The two then parted ways.

The wheels rumbled.

An agricultural instructor stood by the roadside. He turned to the peasant women and said, “Regarding the previous question, you are safe. The war has nothing to do with you… Yes, it has nothing to do with your men either. You just focus on farming. Did you see those people just now? They are all the lord's soldiers. Leave the battlefield matters to them. Shut up! Don't you shrewish women trust our lord? Just do your duty. Hurry up and plant these hundreds of acres of cotton. If you ask me, they will never be ruined. Anyone who dares to touch these lands, I will fight them to the death…”

……

It took Ed some time to finally arrive at the new compound of the Thirteenth Brigade.

He had come here to check it out long ago. Last year it was just a rough draft, with the foundation laid. This year it was quickly completed. The names of the soldiers were posted in front of each brick house. The layout and style were exactly the same as before, which reduced the sense of unfamiliarity.

Yu Lun, the think tank leader of the 13th Squadron, had been waiting anxiously here for half a month. Upon seeing those familiar faces arrive, he immediately greeted them warmly.

Ed asked, "Have you checked the package?"

“Alright,” Yulun replied. “Each room has a full set of tables, chairs, and benches, and all the pots, pans, and utensils are provided. His Highness also put two extra wool blankets in each room, saying that the winters in Fengrao City are cold, and these are gifts for us.”

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, they will spend the next few decades here.

“There’s a brick kiln to the north, but the work of firing bricks is too tiring, and our families can’t do it, even if you pay them. There’s a piece of public land to the east, belonging to another settlement. His Highness has transferred more than a hundred men from that settlement to serve as military laborers, so there’s not enough land to cultivate. When that happens, the people from our Thirteenth Brigade will go and help with the farming…” Youlun rambled on about the brigade’s future plans.

The think tank is primarily responsible for handling matters related to the work and daily life of the military.

Their soldiers were all professional soldiers who would never farm unless absolutely necessary; military training was their entire lives. However, their families, who were not in the workforce, were required to perform community service.

This has always been the case in Origin City, and Abundance City is no exception; no one can do without working.

But the army is highly obedient, so a little hardship is nothing. Everyone is suffering, which is the same as no one is suffering.

Yulun led them to collect a relocation allowance of thirty gold coins, which they then used to purchase a large quantity of salted meat, flour, brown rice, beer, and other supplies at the department store in Plenty City. After transporting them back, the wives all set to work, preparing a sumptuous dinner with the ingredients, and they all drank themselves into a stupor.

Three days later, they would have to return to their posts. ...

That day, Ed received a notification of a military conference.

He handed over the daily training tasks to the five squad leaders and went to the conference room with Yulun.

In the conference room, they learned that the Black Iron's mobilized army was heading towards Plenty City, divided into four routes.

They set off along the Black Iron Road, leading 300,000 troops through muddy swamps and the Hot Summer Islands.

The jungle area is a secondary road between the mid and top lanes, where many nobles lead 300,000 ragtag troops.

The central route leads to Lion's Pass, with Marco and Earl Felin leading an army of 500,000.

They took the Bro River waterway, with Beast Carter, Provence, and others leading an army of 200,000.

Together they formed an army of 1.3 million.

Ed and the other captains fell silent upon hearing this.

Who are you trying to scare?!
The actual number absolutely needs to be cut in half, and even less. The maximum number of combat and logistical personnel combined should be one-third.

Everyone present felt pressured.

Even if it's only a third, that's still more than all the wars of kings combined.

Princess White Steel, of high status, said, "Carter and Provence are traveling by water. They have ships to transport supplies and march along the shore. They are very fast, faster than Lion's Territory and the Black Iron Road..."

Theoretically, the Black Iron Army should have advanced along four routes, steadily and surely, and finally joined forces to attack, heading straight for the City of Abundance.

But for now...

The journey down the road was somewhat reckless, as it was thirty kilometers from Fengrao City.

The wilderness is too slow, and the marching speed is significantly lagging behind other armies. Due to the rugged and difficult roads, they are still more than 100 kilometers away.

The distance between the two cities is fifty kilometers, and it will take two days to drive into Fengrao City.

The army in the central route has the largest number of troops, claiming to be 500,000. It is currently stationed in Lion Territory and is maintaining a steady advance, covering a distance of about 70 to 80 kilometers.

Although Tahithina was unaware of the Black Iron Army's specific deployment, the current situation clearly violated a cardinal rule of warfare—why are you pushing so deep into the bottom lane?
Jett asked, "Is the information accurate?"

“I saw it with my own eyes,” said the Warcraft witch.

The marching routes of the four armies could not be concealed at all.

“Our chance has come. The best defense is offense.” Tashina pointed out the key point, saying, pointing to the map, “Carter and Provence are coming by water and haven’t set up camp yet. Let’s take this opportunity to crush them.”

"But the enemy coming from Black Iron Road probably won't give us that chance." Roman looked at the top lane minion wave.

The Black Iron Road was built for military marches; it was wide and allowed for rapid advances.

The city of Fengrao will attack the lower route, and as soon as the upper route receives the news, they will advance at full speed.

Princess White Steel said, "Five thousand elite soldiers, the support of the troops in Apple Town, plus my own army, are enough to deal with the beasts and Provence!"

"Furthermore, Lord Roman, you have rebuilt the castles of Baron Leicester and Shane, stationing five hundred troops in each. These two fortresses can attack the Black Iron Road from both sides if they send troops out. I don't believe that the mercenaries and islanders will take such a risk."

(End of this chapter)