EP.277
Reich Imperial Palace conference room.
According to custom, ministers such as the Minister of Military Affairs of the Ministry of Military Affairs and the Minister of Justice of the Ministry of Justice should come first and wait for the emperor long before the emperor comes.
Although it was a bit inefficient to invite busy ministers and make them wait for a long time until the emperor came, it was not without reason.
It is of course unacceptable for a minister to appear at the conference hall later than the emperor, and it shows that the imperial ministers are ready to respond to the emperor’s call at any time, which is a kind of show of loyalty.
However, the newly crowned Emperor Michael von Reich broke that tradition and chose to enter the conference room at the same time as the ministers.
Among the ministers who saw this, they seemed surprised that they had broken the custom, but no one disliked it.
This is because it was much better to finish official duties as quickly as possible and drink and have fun at a banquet hosted by the emperor, rather than waiting in vain for reasons of custom.
“I, Michael von Reich, the 23rd Emperor of the Reich Empire, hereby solemnly swear to Deus that I will fairly deal with the merits and punishment of those who played a major role in the conquest of Warsaw. “Do you, my ministers, swear to Deus that you will not harbor any personal feelings or unclean thoughts?”
To those words, all the ministers answered in unison.
“Yes, Your Majesty. “I pledge to put aside personal thoughts and evaluate only the obvious facts.”
After exchanging formal greetings, the servants of the imperial palace handed over documents summarizing the achievements of the generals who participated in this battle.
As the pile of documents was placed in each person’s seat, everyone, including the emperor, began to quietly review the contents inside.
The Emperor and his ministers began reading with the ambition to handle it with a resolute attitude and maintain composure today without being startled or embarrassed, in case Peter Yeager does another ‘Peter Yeager’ today.
That resolve was broken in just three minutes.
“Captain Jaeger has done something again. Fighting against an enemy army that had 50,000 more troops than our own, we slaughtered 60,000 enemy soldiers? “It’s unlikely that someone wrote 2 or 3 wrong.”
“The naval battle in the Griffino Sea is at a level where the imperial naval doctrine needs to be rewritten. Surrounding an island, they surrounded an enemy fleet that was three times larger than their own, and then recruited the local fishermen and launched a fire attack. “Is this a plan that a person could come up with?”
“Out of 120 enemy ships, 97 were sunk? “What on earth did I do to get a criminal record like this?”
The Emperor of the Empire, Michael, looked down at them from a position slightly higher than that of the ministers, and continued to smile quietly with the corners of his mouth touching his ears.
In his mind, he thought, ‘Peter Yeager is a talent that I personally selected when I was the crown prince.’ I wanted to brag like this out loud, but I had to hold back because if I took Count Jaeger’s side too much, there would be a backlash against him among the ministers.
‘The Minister of Military Affairs said that even our Captain Jaeger could be defeated in this Battle of Gryfino, so he suggested that we should prepare to prevent him from being discharged from the army due to a single defeat. It was all in vain.’
More than 20,000 gold has already been spent on efforts to protect Peter Yeager’s position. That all went to waste.
However, for Michael, this victory strengthened his power base, and he felt so good that he did not even notice the 20,000 gold he lost as insurance money.
After the emperor had completed the process of roughly confirming the 80 military merits eligible for general-level awards over the course of approximately two hours, the prime minister stood up and spoke.
“The strategic benefits the Empire gained through this victory are as follows. The Grand Duchy of Warsaw lost its seas entirely, and the Reich Empire gained complete control of the southern Baltic Sea. “This southern region is a key point for trade with the northern continent of Europa and a place where huge amounts of herring can be caught, so the empire has gained economic benefits that are difficult to put into monetary terms.”
In fact, the monopoly on maritime trade with the countries of the Rus Federation, including the Kingdom of Stockholm located on the northern continent, did not amount to much money compared to the size of the empire’s economy.
This is because the weather in the Kingdom of Stockholm and the Commonwealth of Rus was so cold that they had little specialty products except furs and were poor.
However, the Empire, which has now secured the entire Warsaw coastal area, has a complete monopoly on herring fishing, which is called the wheat of the sea, on the European continent. If it is distributed well, it can secure enough food to support all the people living in the Reich Empire through herring fishing alone. It was.
In addition, the Prime Minister continued to mention the economic, military, and diplomatic significance of the victory in this war, and during the talk, the ministers applauded the tremendous achievement, but looked helpless.
‘Why the f*ck can’t my son even keep up with that Jaeger?’
‘I used to feel jealous when I saw Jaeger, but now I don’t mind.’
‘That bastard is the kind of guy who will eat one enemy for 40 years. In other words, even if my son and grandson die, I won’t have any enemies.’
After the explanation was over, the emperor, who was greatly impressed by Jaeger’s performance, clapped and said.
“As expected, it’s Captain Jaeger! He has never let me down once! Yes, Minister of Military Affairs. What does the Minister of Military Affairs think?”
“This is a great victory that will go down in history. I think it is right to reward generously. However, since there is no further promotion from the position of captain, how about giving territory and rewards?”
After hearing those words, the emperor was lost in thought.
‘Looking at the magnitude of Captain Jaeger’s achievements, if I were to overdo it even a little, I could easily push him to become my enemy. However, since Captain Jaeger’s father-in-law, the Marquis Benner, is now the enemy, there is no need to overpower him. So, this time, it is also a good idea to slowly raise your status…’
“Although Count Peter Jaeger was an orphan from a commoner and was not loyal to the empire for generations, each of his achievements is very great. So what would it be like to raise the title from count to marquess? “I think we need to adjust the reward accordingly.”
Captain Keitel, who became Minister of Military Affairs, did not express either agreement or disapproval to the statement, and the other ministers began to discuss it while murmuring.
“Let’s be honest that if you reach the rank of earl, you can rise up to it with just one hit. But isn’t marquis the highest title that a nobleman who is nominally unrelated to the imperial family can attain?”
“Don’t you know that one of Count Jaeger’s wives told Princess Louise? Minister of Finance.”
“If you look at the scale of your achievements, it would be unfair to not elevate him to the rank of marquis, Minister of Justice. Please think about the morale of other soldiers and that this will become a precedent.”
Michael continued to watch the discussion progress, and as time went by, he came to a generally positive opinion about Captain Jaeger’s elevation to Marquis.
In fact, considering that raising a title was entirely the emperor’s authority, and considering that he had destroyed Warsaw’s entire navy and army and even received a principality, there was a high probability that those who opposed him would be labeled as just jealous malcontents.
As opinions gathered, the Prime Minister collected their opinions and submitted them.
“There is a precedent for General Peter Yeager being inaugurated as a brigadier general at the age of 25. I don’t think it’s necessary to bring up past examples given his accomplishments. “The ministers support Captain Peter Yeager’s elevation to the marquisate.”
“I understand. Then, let me suggest the reward plan I came up with.”
After saying that, Michael took a moment to breathe, then exhaled.
“Count Peter von Jaeger’s title is promoted to marquis, and he is granted the counties of Aarhus, Esbjerg, and Odense. In addition, we will grant 200,000 gold in territory development funds and 120,000 gold in rewards.”
When Captain Peter Yeager had just acquired the North five years ago, it was almost like an unexplored wasteland, so he needed funds to develop the territory.
However, considering that there was no need to grant development funds since the northern part of the country was now a territory where people could make a living, it was like giving a huge reward in the name of territory development.
There were likely to be voices of opposition, but no one dared argue in front of a major who had massacred over 100,000 enemy soldiers.
“In addition, I will bestow the title of baronet on Laura von Vener, who contributed greatly to the victory by commanding the fishing boats that served as bombers in the Battle of Gryfino and leading the knights on the Plain of Glopino, and bestowing the baronies of Danzig and Jena. In addition, a promotion to brigadier general is ordered. “I grant the Viscounty of Leipzig and Viscounty of Flanders to Viscount Anastasia von Kergit.”
Then the emperor cleared his throat a few times and continued speaking.
“The fishermen and their wives and children who played a major role in the Battle of Griffino are officially freed from serfdom. Only those who wish to do so are granted the right to be commissioned immediately after completing the minimum training as a naval petty officer or 20 gold. “Each person’s achievements are thoroughly reviewed, and appropriate ranks and awards are given separately according to the position held and performance.”
After that, the rice cake trade continued, and an order was given to all members of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw’s expeditionary force to return home.
A word from the author (author review)
Thank you, zakuti.
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