Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei's War Journey

Chapter 65 Snitching

Caesar gently knocked on the company commander's door, and soon a young voice came from inside.

"Come in."

Caesar pushed open the door and entered. The scene inside the office was much as he had expected. The furnishings were more refined than those in other barracks offices. On the wall hung portraits of the Prussian emperor and a nobleman, as well as a griffin emblem.

Besides the documents, there was a silver cigarette case and an expensive-looking ceramic ashtray on the desk, and the air was filled with the aroma of fine tobacco.

Behind the table sat a young officer of about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. His shoulder insignia indicated that he was a captain, the company commander of this training camp, Captain Henrik von Greifenberg.

He looked Caesar up and down before saying, "Soldier, state your name and unit."

"Reporting, Company Commander! Soldier Kaiser von Hoffmann, from the third platoon of the recruit training camp." Kaiser stood at attention and gave a textbook-perfect salute, his posture upright and his movements crisp and clean.

Captain Henrik's eyes flashed with surprise. This recruit's appearance, temperament, and even the way he saluted were completely different from the farm boys or rough workers' sons he usually saw.

He felt a sense of kinship with this young man, and the fact that his name contained the character "Feng" was a symbol of nobility.

"Von Hoffmann? I don't recall having any other names with 'Von' in them in my unit." Captain Henrik looked at Caesar with a serious expression, wanting to know if this guy was really faking a nobleman.

If there were nobles in his army, he couldn't possibly be unaware of it, and it's impossible for a noble's son to become an ordinary soldier.

While it might not be as easy for him to become a company commander, he could still get a low-ranking officer position as a platoon leader.

Moreover, he had never heard of any nobleman with the surname Hoffmann.

In Prussia, a nobleman's name could, to some extent, represent his or her social status.

The surnames of Prussian nobles were generally the names of their families or the names of the spheres of influence within their families.

For example, his name is von Gryffinberg, and the Gryffin in his name means the Griffin family. There is also the famous von Hindenburg, and the Hindenburg in his name means the territory of his family.

The surname Hoffmann is so common and ordinary that it may not necessarily mean the person is not of noble birth, but it certainly doesn't mean they are of a high rank.

"My grandfather was granted the surname von for his outstanding military achievements in the Franco-Prussian War, becoming a new Junker nobleman. However, his family has declined in recent years. I am joining the army to restore the family's honor," Caesar said.

This was a carefully crafted false identity he had created before coming here. He knew a great deal about the nobility, having interacted with all sorts of nobles since childhood.

Upon hearing this, Captain Henrik's eyes revealed a look of understanding. If it was the declining Junkers, then it would make sense.

The Junker aristocracy held a very special position in Prussia. They were the landed nobles who owned vast amounts of land, monopolized key military and political positions, and were extremely loyal to the Prussian emperor.

It is extremely difficult for ordinary people to become Junker nobles, as the channels for advancement are basically cut off. However, there is still one path to advancement: war. Decades ago, their Iron Chancellor Bismarck launched three major wars and unified Prussia in one fell swoop. A new generation of Junkers was born in those three wars.

They were given the surname Feng because of their outstanding military achievements, and were also allocated some land. However, these new Junkers were always looked down upon by the old Junkers, who believed that the nobility came from their bloodline and that these new Junkers who rose to power through military achievements were just a bunch of nouveau riche.

For a new Junker to truly integrate into the Prussian upper class, in addition to military achievements, they must purchase a genuine noble estate, learn aristocratic etiquette, adopt the manners and manners of the old Junkers, spend as much money as possible to curry favor with the old Junkers, and marry a daughter of the old Junker family in order to be fully accepted by the old Junkers.

Those new Junkers would desperately try to gain the approval of the old Junkers. They would spend almost all their wealth to buy estates, learn etiquette, and raise the next generation to become true nobles so that they could seduce the daughters of the old Junkers. However, they would often run out of money before they could finish all of this, and then fall back to being poor from their position as new nobles.

In Captain Henrik's mind, this was the kind of family Caesar had: they bought a manor with a small amount of money to raise the next generation, but their foundation wasn't strong enough to sustain the manor's expenses, and they eventually went bankrupt.

"So, von Hoffmann, why aren't you eating in the mess hall or resting in the barracks? What brings you to my office? Surely it's not just to chat with me, the company commander, about your family history?" Captain Henrik's tone softened considerably.

Although these old Junkers looked down on the new Junkers, they were still nominally nobles and different from ordinary commoners. He had now tacitly accepted Caesar's identity, since the other party's temperament and behavior were really unlike those of an ordinary commoner.

As for whether Caesar truly originated from a fallen Junker noble family, he was too lazy to delve into it. As long as the other party could justify his actions and abide by the rules in the military camp, he wouldn't mind giving him some limited preferential treatment.

Caesar felt a slight sense of relief, knowing that his fabricated identity had fooled everyone, and now it was time to start tattling.

"Captain, I am not here for personal matters, but to give you a formal report on the safety and effectiveness of my Hoffman squad and the training camp as a whole."

"Oh?" Captain Henrik raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued.

"Please speak," he gestured.

"It's about the artillery and gas drills that Sergeant Hermann organized this afternoon," Caesar said bluntly.

"Sergeant Hermann used live ammunition and tear gas during training this afternoon. Although the impact point of the live ammunition was calculated, there are many variables on the battlefield. Wind and equipment errors may cause the shells to deviate from the intended area, resulting in casualties."

"Furthermore, tear gas can cause severe respiratory irritation and even suffocation in confined or low-lying environments, especially for new recruits. Such extreme training should be conducted after thorough theoretical instruction and basic training, rather than as a surprise attack. Sergeant Hermann's actions have exceeded the scope of reasonable training and are more akin to reckless adventure and irresponsibility towards the lives of soldiers!"

As Captain Henrik listened to Caesar's account, his expression gradually turned serious.

He knew, of course, that Hermann’s training methods were rather brutal. The veteran who had crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood had a training philosophy that he firmly believed in, thinking that only by getting infinitely close to death could one truly learn to survive.

In the past, he turned a blind eye to some of Hermann's outrageous behavior because the training effect was indeed remarkable, and Hermann always managed to control the situation and there had never been a real major accident.

But today's situation seems to have gone too far; the risks of live-fire artillery fire combined with tear gas are indeed uncontrollable.

"I understand the situation," Captain Henrik said after a moment's thought.

"Sergeant Hermann's training methods are indeed quite radical, but his intention is to help you adapt to the battlefield environment as quickly as possible. I will talk to him and emphasize the importance of training safety. You also need to understand that the battlefield is ruthless, and the more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in war."

Caesar could easily tell that Captain Henrik was trying to smooth things over and move on, and he wasn't about to let the opportunity slip away.

"Captain, understanding does not mean unconditional acceptance. The safety of soldiers is the bottom line. I urge you to immediately order a ban on such high-risk drills and to impose appropriate constraints and warnings on Sergeant Herman. Otherwise, I reserve the right to report this further to higher command," Caesar said.

His words remained polite, but the underlying insistence and subtle threat were quite evident.

Captain Henrik's face darkened. A new recruit dared to speak to him in such a tone, which seriously challenged his authority.

"Soldier! Watch your attitude! How to train is my responsibility! It's not your place to tell me what to do! Sergeant Herman is an experienced veteran. His methods may be harsh, but they are all for the Empire and for your own good! Get back to your posts immediately! This matter ends here!" Captain Henrik roared angrily as he stood up, trying to use his position to intimidate Caesar.

But Caesar Gattuso, when had he ever been afraid of such a minor nobleman, continued speaking.

"Captain, I respect your authority, but I must also remind you that according to the Imperial Army Training Management Regulations..."

Article 17 of Chapter 4 states that any training program that may pose a significant personal danger to trainees must be approved in writing by a superior commander, and a detailed safety plan and emergency medical measures must be developed. Did you receive Sergeant Hermann's formal application and plan for this afternoon's exercise? If not, then this training itself constitutes a violation of regulations! I believe that a good commander would never allow artillery fire to be directed at their own soldiers!

Captain Henrik's face stiffened. He had actually received a report from Hermann that there would be artillery and gas drills in the afternoon; otherwise, Hermann would not have had the authority to mobilize the mortars.

However, Hermann was referring to the use of live wooden rounds, reduced-charge training rounds, and smoke rounds, which is why he ignored the artillery fire outside earlier. After all, these rounds are generally harmless unless they hit people directly.

He only just found out that Hermann had actually used full-power rounds and tear gas.

Caesar noticed that Captain Henrik's expression was off and quickly pressed on, saying, "Captain, if you don't take action soon, your authority will be completely usurped. Right now, everyone in the camp is basically following Sergeant Herman's orders. We new recruits haven't even seen your face yet. How can we obey your commands during wartime? Your family will also be disgraced."

These words struck a nerve with Henrik. Although he was sent by his family to gain experience, he couldn't imagine how the other members of his family would ridicule him if his power was usurped by a mere soldier.

"Go and call Sergeant Herman over. I want to talk to him," Henrik said, sitting back down in his chair.

Caesar's lips curled into a smile, realizing his plan had worked. He turned and left the company commander's office to find Herman.