Chapter 326： Turbulent Bulgaria (Part 1)

A large group of soldiers on the streets of Sofia in the winter were walking forward with their suitcases, and there were many farewellers on both sides of the road. It can be seen by sending others' sad expressions that this is sending one's relatives to the battlefield.

According to official Bulgarian statistics, Sofia, which had a population of 470,000 before the war, now counts only 310,000. Most of the population gap of 160,000 in the middle was conscripted into the army, and the 27th Division was formed in this way.

As the division formed by Bulgaria's third wave member in 2016, it can only be said that the 27th Division was formed very late, mainly due to lack of equipment and training. As a result, the twenty-seventh division, which was formed by a source of three soldiers and two soldiers, generally had a longer training period than others. Moreover, according to the words of its commander, the main responsibility of these troops composed of soldiers of about 40 and 16 or 17 years old should be to defend the second-tier cities. But now facing Romania and the Allied powers, the 27th Division can only catch the ducks on the shelves.

The farewell scene now shows the 27th Division.

As the order issued by Admiral Zekov has already arrived in the capital Sofia, the 27th Division that received the order is ready to pack, and they are about to go to the battlefield, so it is right for the soldiers' relatives to be sad. Moreover, the reinforcements composed of troops dispatched by Thessaloniki have arrived outside the city, and they are now rushing to join him and go to Pleven to reinforce Lieutenant General Kudingchev who has been struggling there. But waiting for their reinforcements outside the city, they have some worries of their own.

In the temporary headquarters of the reinforcements outside the city, Lieutenant General Triyev, who is in charge of leading the team, asked some dissatisfaction with the communications staff.

"Does Sophia still refuse to give me the supplies I need?"

The little staff officer who was questioned did not dare to answer. "Sofia's munitions warehouse has sent news. They do have ammunition and munitions, but the wine and other living materials we need are not stored in their warehouse."

The communications staff took a look at Lieutenant General Triyev and continued. "Then I went to the city government to coordinate according to your instructions, but they refused, saying that they didn't have many supplies, and we couldn't meet our requirements."

Upon hearing the words of the communications staff, Lieutenant General Triyev was very dissatisfied with the city government's answer. Because he knew that Sophia, who lives in the capital, with many dignitaries, could not have the materials he said. Obviously, the city government was perfunctory.

Triyev felt some dissatisfaction, so he picked up the phone and spoke to the operator. "Mayor Vasily, who fetched me from the municipal government, told me that Triyev was looking for him."

After waiting for a few minutes, Lieutenant General Triyev finally connected to the mayor.

"Hey, is it Mayor Vasily? I’m Triyev... I remember the last time I met was at the King’s Banquet... This time the soldiers complained because of the urgency. I plan to give them some alcohol. And food to ease the emotions... Nothing, but we have the command of the commander-in-chief Admiral Zekov to collect the necessary living supplies... I just said that Sofia is the capital and I can do this, it's not because Are you anxious to say something wrong... or nothing, Mayor Vasily, hello, hello."

Lieutenant General Triyev, who put down the phone, looked a little uncertain. The Mayor of Vasily couldn't do anything about him.

Triyev felt a little aggrieved, because Mayor Vasily regarded himself as a man of power for personal gain. Heaven and earth conscience, I don't have this idea at all, and everything I do is for the country.

As a general who has led soldiers for many years, he knows the soldiers too well. The long-term shortage of living supplies, and the confrontation and fighting with the Allied Powers in Thessaloniki, the soldiers are already a little dissatisfied. The emergency deployment of frontline troops to reinforce Pleven has already shaken the soldiers' military spirit.

In the four-day march from Thessaloniki to Sofia, hundreds of soldiers were left behind. As the commander, Triyev immediately saw the strangeness. There were too many left behind, and it was becoming more and more ulcerated day by day.

So when he walked to Sofia, Lieutenant General Triyev immediately contacted Admiral Zekov to express his concerns and asked to stop here for a day to restore the low morale of the soldiers. As a means of restoring morale, daily necessities such as tobacco, alcohol and bacon have become the materials he needs, but at present, the government does not have the idea to meet his requirements.

Just when Lieutenant General Triyev was a little undecided, the chief of staff who had gone to the bottom to make a round of inspections walked into the temporary headquarters with a cold wind.

Triyev asked immediately when he saw his old partner enter the door. "How was the inspection result?"

The chief of staff told him with a worried look. "The situation of the troops is a bit bad. The soldiers are very angry about sending them out of the battlefield to reinforce Pleven. I visited many companies, and officers complained to me that the soldiers were emotionally unstable, and they were very uneasy about their orders. There is also a taste of yang and yin."

Hearing what the Chief of Staff said, Triyev knew that this was the soldier's venting of his emotions because of the nervousness on the battlefield, and he had not been able to rest. He also understood these soldiers very well, but the current situation made it impossible for Bulgaria to put these elite soldiers to rest. That's why he planned to numb the soldiers with tobacco, alcohol and other items first, so as to release part of their emotions, but now it seems that his plan is going to fail.

The chief of staff looked at the ugly-looking Lieutenant General Triyev and spoke tentatively. "We didn't get the extra materials we needed?"

Facing the chief of staff's inquiry, Triyev nodded heavily and said. "I just talked to Mayor Sofia on the phone, and he refused my request."

Hearing what his partner said, the chief of staff spoke a little bit. "What are these government officials thinking, aren't they afraid that the soldiers' dissatisfaction will cause turmoil."

Triyev said with a wry smile when the chief of staff exploded. "He thought what I was talking about was a threat to him."

Triyev spread his hands and said helplessly and continued. "So, it is impossible for us to get these materials from the Sofia government."

Facing Triyev's words, the chief of staff said after thinking about it. "Why don't we ask the Prime Minister again In the face of the Chief of Staff, Triyev hesitated. The reason is simple. If you go to the Prime Minister for this kind of thing, it fully demonstrates his personal ability. limited.

So Triyev said hesitantly. "This kind of thing should be dealt with by the Prime Minister, I am afraid that neither of us will be too well."

The Prime Minister has a lot of things every day, and it is impossible to make arrangements specifically for this kind of thing, and they are military generals, and it is not appropriate to find the Prime Minister directly.

The Chief of Staff said about this. "The Prime Minister Radoslav will not reject us, right?"

Triyev replied somewhat uncertainly. "It's hard to tell, you know the style of our prime minister."

Prime Minister Radoslav of the two populations was born in Norwich, and he was a lawyer. He also had the experience of studying in Germany and Austria-Hungary. Before that, he served as the youngest Prime Minister of Bulgaria (July-September 1886). After the resignation of Prime Minister Geschov after the Balkan War, the Liberal Party led by Radoslav formed a cabinet, and he played a very important role in promoting Bulgaria's entry into the Allied Powers.

His famous saying is. "If you love your country, then you should sacrifice everything for him."

So when facing the prime minister with fanatical patriotism, both of them were a little uncertain.

"Why don't you just call and ask?"

Facing Triyev's inquiry, the previously impulsive chief of staff calmed down. He also said hesitantly. "I think this matter should be discussed in the long term, otherwise we will get these supplements in the next city."

"Also."

After Triyev answered casually, he glanced at the next city on the map marked on the marching road. Ferraca, separated from Sofia by a mountain in central Bulgaria, will be their next stop, and then they will arrive in Pleven.