190 – Defense of the Yellow Plains (3)

The day after the order was given to build a wooden fence across the Yellow Harbor River.

Baron Balt of the Legion of the Marquis of Creutel pinched his cheek with his left hand, not holding a shovel.

I wouldn’t have felt the pain in my dream, but I felt a tingling pain where he pinched me.

When Balt was despairing at the reality of having to shovel after becoming a baron, a major from the Engineers Battalion approached and said, looking at his eyes.

“Your Excellency, Baron Balt, I am Major Meyer Bolt of the Engineer Unit dispatched to check and supervise the status of the Baltic Division’s camp construction.”

Normally, the noble baron didn’t have to manage his expression in front of a major, but…

The colonel of the Engineers Regiment was supervising and giving orders to the Marquis, and the major in front of him was in a position to act on behalf of the Marquis.

In other words, any attitude you show him can be reported to the Marquis.

Balt had no choice but to answer the words of the major in front of him as if he had no complaints at all.

“You are in charge of overseeing our unit’s construction area. Yes, please take care of me.”

“Yes, Your Excellency. Then we’ll go straight to work supervision. Sapper battalion! Go to each assigned area and start supervising the work!”

When the order of the sapper battalion commander came, the soldiers under his command began to scatter in order in regiments, battalions, and companies under the command of the Baltic Division.

When all the sappers arrived at the pre-agreed place, they double-checked the work plan so that the commanders and soldiers of each unit higher in rank than themselves would not find fault with them.

The soldiers under the command of Baron Balt, who saw this, stuck out their tongues and whispered that they were poisoned servants when they saw that not only officers but also individual soldiers were being thoroughly checked.

However, from the perspective of the soldiers belonging to the engineer battalion, it was unfair…

The soldiers belonging to the engineer battalion are in a situation where the lowest rank private has to instruct and supervise the work of a sergeant or higher who leads two squads.

In such a situation, if you made a mistake, even if it was done by order, there was a very high possibility that you would suffer from a violent gnashing.

‘We’re not doing this because we want to… If you give the instructions without mistakes and finish the construction perfectly, His Excellency will prevent any problems that arise in the process and will give you a lot of rewards… If you make a mistake, you will die.’

The sappers, who were so determined, spoke politely but with a very firm voice to the commander of the unit they had to supervise, as if commanding.

“It is an order from the Marquis. Captain Slope’s company has to work for one month in areas 1 through 5 shown on the map here.”

“Lt. Col. Allen’s battalion will be working from 15 to 40, first digging around here at a depth of about one meter for a week. Also, if the stakes come along the river, after driving them… ”

“Commander Cent, from now on, I think you can cut down the trees in the forest above the Yellow Harbor River and then weave the logs together to make a raft.”

The unit commanders were uncomfortable with sappers of lower ranks giving them instructions.

However, under the order of the Marquis, he did not find any fault with the thorough and respectful manner of speaking…

“As a baron, I also hold a shovel and shovel, but I don’t think my subordinates intend to disregard Your Excellency’s orders, right? Hey there soldier! I see your hands!!”

“Corporal Hans! I’m sorry, Mr. Baron! I will correct it!!!”

“Right now, His Excellency Marquis, like us, is holding a shovel and pickaxe and getting his hands dirty while working! So work hard to death! I will teach you guys how to shovel!”

Beside Balt who worked like that, Major Bolt often gave instructions to Balt and other soldiers to carry out the mission entrusted to him.

“Your Excellency, after digging the ground like this, you need to ram the walls and the floor with a shovel to prevent the soil from flowing down. Also, when a big stone comes out, you have to dig it up and then pile it up there instead of breaking it with a pickaxe… ”

“Okay… ”

Even after rising from the Marquis of Creutel to the highest baron he could rise to as a vassal, his vassals felt that when he saw Balt shoveling like low-ranking soldiers while receiving instructions from a major.

‘I don’t know if I’m protesting when the sappers talk nonsense or give wrong instructions, but why should I do it if I’m a noble? Going to say this… ‘

So the officers also quickly moved to the construction area assigned to them and started work in order not to fall victim to the wrath of Balt, their master and superior.

And when they moved to the construction area, similarly to Balt, they started working while receiving work orders from sappers with a lower rank than themselves.

As a result… Other soldiers had the same traumatic experience as the officers.

The regimental commander moved the log that came down the river with the soldiers under his command, and the battalion commander made his own clothes like rags and, though he was clumsier than the soldiers, dug the ground with a shovel and made a trench.

Also, they directly encouraged the soldiers who were actually running in the field and talked about it.

“you! Why are you trying to lift that heavy thing by yourself? Take it with you.”

“His Excellency the Marquis said that a drop of sweat shed here would save a cup of blood we would shed! And already at another site, His Excellency the Marquis is personally shoveling and axing under the supervision of the sappers! Cheer up!”

The soldiers also worked hard with a heart of gratitude for the nobles and officers who helped them with their work, and with the thought of working hard.

As a result, the overall work speed was increased, but…

No matter how respected the commander-in-chief and other officers are, even in a situation where the soldiers work together without being unfair, doing physical labor such as construction makes your body hard.

So, only lower-ranking officers such as soldiers, noncommissioned officers, second lieutenants, and lieutenants work somewhat effortlessly when conducting construction in the field.

Unless it’s a very urgent construction, I don’t do it at such a fast speed when I shovel, and when I get tired while working, I take a little break.

Also, when eating, they take a break a little longer than the designated meal time, or drink a glass of beer-like liquor when thirsty under the connivance of junior officers.

However, as a result of the high-ranking people’s enthusiasm for the work, recognizing the fact that ‘His Excellency the Marquis is personally working, and the engineers are supervising’, the soldiers are thoroughly following the principle…

No, I made more effort than that with the high-ranking people.

Shoveling was usually done twice, but the seniors worked hard, so I did it three times to concentrate, and even if the work continued for several hours, only a set break was given.

As the body became so tired, a consensus was formed among the officers and soldiers that ‘It’s not unfair that the Marquis is working together, but I really want to die’.

Eventually, among the older officers and non-commissioned officers who were about to be discharged, ‘I thought I would do my best because I had a chance to make a name for myself in the war in my later years… I can’t believe I’m shoveling… ‘ The thought spread.

Some of the soldiers who were about to be discharged grumbled in a quiet voice, as if they couldn’t openly complain in front of high-ranking people.

“I’m going to be discharged soon, but I’m getting discharged… Why in the world did the shoveling man who didn’t even do well in his later years… ”

“When Sergeant Hughes sprained his feet while working a few days before he was caught marching and was exempted from marching, he boasted that he would earn more land after posting achievements here… What are you doing… ”

But no matter how hard you work, time eventually passes…

“You are suffering! Eat.”

“Today’s lunch is salted meat, biscuit, herring with a little cheese! Do you have a squad that would like to receive seaweed?”

It was the meal time everyone had been waiting for the most.

Upon hearing that, the soldiers all hurriedly put down the tools they were working on and received food, which was 1.5 times more than usual.

Next, they split into 10-member squads and boiled water in a large pot with seaweed and biscuits.

Normally, the soldiers would have complained about the same diet, but…

As if they were really hungry today, not a single person ate without complaining.

After everyone had finished their meal, and while enjoying the break time given for a while, a senior sergeant in charge of a squad grumbled and said,

“It’s okay to work… All in all, why am I shoveling in my later years… Isn’t that right, Reese?”

“Still, since His Excellency the Marquis and His Excellency Baron Balt are working together, isn’t it unfair that only the executives are taking a break?”

“That’s the case, but thanks to that, I think I’ll fall behind. The company commander, who normally doesn’t even supervise shoveling, can’t rest because he’s running like crazy and shoveling… Also, if you had less than 8 months left from being discharged, you were on standby, but did it make sense to shovel a shovel when you were brought to the front in your later years as a company commander?”

“Yeah, Sgt. ”

The two of them were enjoying their break, but Corporal Reese was speechless after that.

Because, behind the late sergeant, stood their commander, the Marquis of Creutel.

The corporal saw him and tried to salute, but the marquis stopped it with his hand and slapped the sergeant in front of him on the back.

The late-year sergeant, soon to be discharged, looked back with an annoyed expression on who the hell had hit me, but his face turned white when he noticed that the Marquis was behind him.

And when he was about to salute loudly in that state, the Marquis waved his hand and gave a signal to stop saluting.

“I ordered those who will be discharged soon to be left in the rear if possible… Nevertheless, I never thought I would be dragged to the wire and shoveled. It’s been a lot of trouble.”

“no! It is an honor to be able to fight under His Excellency until right before he is discharged!”

The Marquis of Creutel looked at the sergeant who had complained about shoveling in his later years and thought about it.

‘I also had a hard time because I was caught in guerrilla training in my later years… My teeth are grinding when I think of the hardships I went through at that time. He says he is a professional soldier, but he is retiring at the end of his life. ‘

So, the marquis felt sorry for the sergeant because he seemed to overlap with the image he had suffered in the Korean army.

That’s why, originally, it should be punished for the crime of complaining about the military command within the army, but I gave up on that idea.

Instead, he said to the sergeant in his later years, showing the dirt-stained hands and clothes that remained from his work until he inspected the construction site.

“I am about to be discharged soon, but I was brought here because of the company commander’s coercion, not because of the coercion, so it must be very difficult. So, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear what you complained about. Instead, be careful the next time you get caught by the other officers, you might get whipped.”

After that, the Marquis quietly left the place, leaving behind a bottle of beer.

And that night, as a way of consoling the soldiers who had just finished their campaign, the Marquis bestowed beef and wine only on them.