Chapter 1696: 1697If His Majesty asks
Chapter 16961697If Your Majesty asks
The most essential parts include aircraft manufacturing, automobile and tank manufacturing, etc. Most of these factories were destroyed by bombings, and a few were relocated, leaving only ruins.
In this case, it is impossible for the dwarves to have much industry that can operate normally, and the little that is left can only survive by relying on the raw materials and electricity provided by their allies in the south.
It’s no joke at all. The dwarves are now struggling to produce their own bullets. They can only rely on the assistance of elves for cannonballs and the like. Many of the weapons of the troops near Ironforge are broken and one of them is missing.
Without the support of modern industry, thermal weapons are non-renewable resources. Now the dwarf commanders finally understand the meaning of this sentence.
At present, the most supplies that the dwarf troops receive are the mass-produced Mauser rifles and 7.92mm rifle bullets from the elves. But hundreds of thousands of troops are constantly being consumed, and these rifles and bullets that come from afar are simply a drop in the bucket.
A month ago, the dwarf soldiers looked down upon the Mauser rifles that were easily out of ammunition, but now they can only throw away the Mosin-Nagant rifles that can't find ammunition.
Another problem that devastated the senior dwarf commanders was that the inventory of shells for their 152-caliber howitzers was decreasing sharply, and the elven 150-mm caliber guns and corresponding shells that replaced these guns were very few.
A large number of valuable artillery pieces became scrap metal due to lack of ammunition, and the number of artillery pieces and artillery shells that could be replenished were pitiful. This has seriously affected the war situation.
It is conceivable that the dwarves can no longer sustain the munitions and supplies to support their own battles, let alone such seemingly unimportant things as cotton-padded clothes.
In any case, in the eyes of the officers, the dwarf troops fighting at home have a way to solve the small difficulty of surviving the winter: if it doesn't work, they can just look for civilian winter clothes in the ruins, and it's not impossible to find them.
The prime minister did not think so. He was very sensitive to this issue: "I have asked the finance minister, and I have asked other ministers... We do not have enough cotton clothes for the winter, and the troops can only place their hopes on Sheltering from the cold in the city.”
In fact, the prime minister had already guessed from the attitude of the top brass of the army and the reports from some subordinates that the situation of dwarf troops robbing civilians on the front line was very serious.
This is overdrawing the life of the empire and destroying the foundation of the empire. He really doesn't want this to happen, because after the war is over, these actions will eventually be liquidated.
The turmoil will continue, and the legitimacy of the Ice Empire will be questioned. All the messes have to be cleaned up, and maybe the Ice Empire won't get back on its feet for a hundred years.
Of course, the premise is that there is still the country of Ice Empire.
Despite this, the prime minister expressed his concerns: "But the problem now is that the city can no longer guarantee heating, the factory has been completely paralyzed, and the boilers can no longer operate. In this case, how can the city provide troops with How much winter support will be provided?”
Sure enough, Larbu gave a solution that the army has come up with many times! The chilling so-called solution: "Our soldiers can find their own fuel and food..."
Of course, the troops can find things for winter in the city of Ironforge. They can burn the unclaimed furniture in the collapsed buildings as firewood, or they can pick up the cotton clothes next to the corpses of civilians and put them on.
Then what? What if that's not enough? They would break into civilians' homes, burn their things, rob their food, and even take away all their clothes... How do those civilians who have lost everything survive the winter? The military would not consider such a problem. But as the prime minister of the empire, he could not ignore such things no matter what.
Therefore, the prime minister stared at Larbu and continued to ask: "I believe what you said, and then what? They retreated all the way from the north to here. I don't know how much food they have found for themselves, but you let them stay in Ironforge Find something to cook by yourself, find something to eat by yourself...and then what?"
“Then how can we face the civilians of Ironforge? Do we not want this land after the war is over?” Without waiting for Larbu to answer, he continued to ask.
Larbu was silent for a few seconds before speaking, and replied in a dry voice: "As long as we can still control Ironforge, it doesn't matter what the civilians think! The most important thing now is to win this war. ! Prime Minister."
"Maybe you are right, so I didn't stop you, or what you did. It doesn't matter, things have reached this point, no matter what method we have to try. But, I hope we will not regret today's choice ." After a few seconds of silence, the prime minister spoke.
He hoped that he would not regret agreeing to such a choice, and that the elves would not regret taking away the planes from the Ice Empire. He also hoped that the Ice Empire could survive this **** winter.
The water glass on the table suddenly shook, and the boiling water inside rippled. Both people felt the vibration, and they raised their heads to look at the light bulb hanging above their heads.
Sure enough, the incandescent light bulb was shaking, and the Tang army really began to bombard Ironforge. I don't know where the other party's goal is, but it's obvious that this time the Tang people are serious about it.
The tenacious resistance of the dwarves also aroused the anger of the Tang army. In order to reduce casualties, the Tang army began to use rocket launchers and heavy artillery to solve some solid buildings that were not easy to capture.
These shelling areas are actually considered the core areas of the city, so in the underground bunker of the palace, you can clearly feel the constant shaking of the earth under the shelling.
“How many days do you think Balov can keep guard at the railway station?” The prime minister looked away from the chandelier and asked Larbu, the chief of staff opposite.
Larbu shook his head: "I'm not sure. In fact, whether it is still in Balov's hands or not is a question. Although the order to take a step back and shoot immediately was issued long ago, the battle line is still retreating. …We can’t arrest everyone and beat them to death, right?”
“In other words, the Tang Army is only less than 10 kilometers away from here?” The prime minister continued to ask.
"That's about it, Prime Minister." After answering the question, Larbu stood up and saluted: "I'm going back first... I think some less important documents can be burned."
"I understand." The prime minister stood up and said to him: "If His Majesty the Emperor asks..."
"I understand, I know what to say." Larbu nodded, turned around and left.