Forgetfulness is a virtue, and also a means of self-protection.
At this time, a minister in charge of governing a portion of Taren Kingdom's terrestrial territory suddenly spoke up with concern, "What worries me is whether the Dorne Kingdom will launch an assault on us from the land."
You see, Taren Kingdom's problem right now isn't just that their entire navy fleet has been annihilated. Their not-so-outstanding army has also just collapsed, hasn't it...
Compared to the construction of their navy, the land forces of Taren Kingdom, which had always prospered by the sea, did not seem to be as brave and adept in battle.
This body of troops, aside from the 30,000-strong main contingent sent to attack Dorne, mostly hasn't been re-equipped yet, their hands still grasping the thoroughly outdated Shireck Flintlock Guns.
Similarly, Taren Kingdom, always proud of its formidable navy, didn't actually have strong coastal defenses either.
All their batteries were equipped with outdated muzzle-loaded cannons; some were even decades-old equipment that hadn't been replaced at all.
The hundred or so breech-loading cannons recently assisted by Shireck had been taken by the land forces to put on a show of strength in the attack against the Dorne Kingdom.
They had initially planned to test the power of these breech-loading cannons, thinking if they worked well, they'd purchase more. But those advanced new-style cannons were all recklessly left on the battlefield in Dorne.
Sometimes things are so fantastically ironic: they had hoped that after their victory, they could use the plundered resources to thoroughly update their military equipment, yet they ended up losing the battle.
Hearing the minister speak up, the King of Taren froze, then related that he had just remembered his land forces were also doomed.
So he looked at the minister, muttering subconsciously, "You mean ..."
The minister didn't wait for the King of Taren to finish and replied, "Yes! Once they launch an attack, our already defeated troops definitely won't be able to hold the line, and by then... we will have lost the hard-won lands we've been expanding and occupying for decades..."
These lands were hard-won and greatly alleviated the problem of Taren Kingdom's insufficient territory and weak national power.
If these inland territories are lost, then it would be wildly unrealistic for Taren Kingdom to maintain a fleet of the former scale.
Chapter Continue:
"Damn it, we've never encountered such a situation before... We've never lost so many warships in a single naval battle..." After a brief silence, the ministers started complaining again.
There was no way around it; they were incapable of saving the situation at this time, but joining in the lamentation was something they could still do.
Consequently, one heard others nodding in agreement, "Yes, we lost the sea battle, and now on land as well... This, this is really ..."
The entire hall was noisy and clamorous; the topic had once again gone off course, and they began to argue, to blame each other.
You said a few words, he said a few words, and after a long time, not a single constructive suggestion had been made, infuriating the King of Taren to the point of a heart attack.
At this moment, an idea flashed through the Prime Minister's mind, and from the name Shireck, he thought of another arms dealer.
Thus, he turned to the King and said, "Your Majesty! Speaking of which, since the Great Tang Group manufactures arms, would it be possible for us to buy a batch of new warships from them?"
"This?" The King of Tarran was shocked by his Prime Minister's leap of imagination. After being stunned for a few seconds, he asked incredulously, "After fighting them for so long, will they still sell us their goods?"
"That's not the right way to think about it, we've been the ones being beaten all along, haven't we?" the Prime Minister of Tarran thought for the first time that being so thoroughly defeated might be a good thing.
"Can we really say that?" Immediately, a minister was startled by the Prime Minister's words, he seemed to see a brand-new door slowly opening before him, a blinding column of light shining right in his face, so bright he couldn't open his eyes.
The more the Prime Minister spoke, the more sense he felt it made, and he thought there might be a good basis to negotiate with the Great Tang Group: "Of course, those prisoners who were sent back didn't they say, we didn't even sink one of their warships..."
"So..." The King was also caught in the rhythm and spoke up, his eyes brightening.
The Prime Minister immediately nodded and expressed his thoughts: "So there isn't any deep-seated hatred between us, is there? Surely, proper communication, along with some compensation and an apology, will resolve things, won't it?"
Indeed, there was no deep-seated hatred between them, it was all Shireck fomenting discord. Perhaps by sitting down for a good talk, they could immediately reach a consensus...
Suddenly, a minister came to his senses, nodding and praising the idea: "It seems... the Prime Minister does have a point."
The Prime Minister's thoughts became more fluid, his ideas seemingly clear: "In any case, this is also a solution. Send an envoy immediately... No! Send two! One overland to Dorne, and another by sea to Hotwind Port! Let them seek peace!
Seek peace with the Great Tang Group! Seek peace with Dorne!"
"Additionally, let's try to gather as many warships as possible and ready ourselves for battle! At least, under the cover of our artillery, we can protect King City, right?" a navy officer added then.
"And we have to regroup the defeated troops on the borders... We must present a front that we will defend to the death. Only then can we gain more leverage at the negotiating table!" an army general also commented.
This supplementary advice appeared much more professional; a minister immediately suggested to urgently transport food, while another advised quickly mobilizing troops to guard the key ports.
"Furthermore, we must also proceed with pursuing debts from Shireck! Get back as much as we can! We're fighting their war! How can they not pay up when we're risking our lives?" the Prime Minister looked towards those ministers aligned with Shireck and added coldly.
At this point, obtaining a few thousand rifles would be good, and managing to get a couple more cannons would be beneficial, because... any bit more strength, even a little, was good.
"Also, send someone with my personal letter immediately to seek aid from the Kingdom of Xilun! Perhaps, over there... they won..." full of hope, the King also commanded.
In his view, maybe the Dorne Kingdom had concentrated their forces on attacking his side, and the Xilun Kingdom... might have already breached Dorne's King City...
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Today's update is a bit stuck, so there are only two releases. If I feel better tomorrow, I'll continue to provide more updates. Please be patient, everyone.