Imperial Elite

Chapter 91 Commander Qiao! We're with you!

Ever since Joe made some complaints under the guise of being drunk, Bridget has reduced the number of times she drinks with Joe after training, and instead started partying with many of Esty's officers.

This orderly life was soon disrupted a few weeks later.

Although Joe privately complained that the Estite politicians had summoned them and then left them to do nothing in Tallinn, in reality, the Estite politicians had done quite a bit behind the scenes.

While they continue to recruit soldiers and mobilize troops, they are also trying to reach an agreement with Livonia on joint operations.

Just as most of the lands in the Old World have some strange claims in history, although the Teutons had declared defeat, this did not affect the desire of some spirited Teutons to establish a Baltic Duchy here, nor did it affect the right-wing forces of Lapland in the north to enthrone a Teutonic prince as their king.

So after Joe accepted their contract, the Estite politicians had been trying to launch a coordinated offensive with Livonia to drive the Teutonic "Iron Division" out of Riga and Parnu.

These diplomatic efforts have now yielded some results, with Livonia nationalists agreeing to launch an offensive with the Estites to drive the Teutons out of their land.

Joe would naturally not be absent from such an offensive. When Commander Esti cautiously inquired about Joe's opinion on the campaign, Joe replied that he was from a defense company and that protecting your homeland from invasion was part of their contract. He added that Joe didn't need to ask him whether he would do it or not; he should ask him where Wagner should be deployed.

Upon hearing that Joe was willing to participate, Commander-in-Chief Esti was overjoyed. After all, if Joe was willing to participate, they would have already won half the battle. So Commander-in-Chief Esti immediately asked Joe where he wanted to engage in the battle.

Seeing that Commander-in-Chief Esther had fallen for the trap, Joe immediately pulled out his map.

During this time, in addition to looking for spirited people like Bridget, Joe was also studying the local situation and how to use his armored regiment to maximize the value of the unit.

After a thorough geopolitical analysis, Joe realized that even after the war ended, his main enemy was still the Teutons.

Unlike Lucia, which was still embroiled in civil war, and whose national consciousness was primarily focused on fighting against the Lucia, the Estites and Livonians had historically maintained good relations with the Teutons and even joined the Hanseatic League.

For many locals, independence would be ideal, but if independence is not possible, they would rather have Teutonics as their superiors than Lucias.

So the first step Joe needs to take now is to kick the Teutons out of the game. After that, regardless of which faction of Lucias he is dealing with, he should maintain a state of preparedness without fighting in order to keep the situation relatively tense.

Only in this way can the pressured Esti people become inseparable from him, giving him the opportunity to gain greater power here.

So Joe also had ideas about how to expel the Teutons.

Firstly, after experiencing two urban battles, despite having extensive experience in urban warfare, Joe did not intend to lead Wagner into urban combat.

That kind of battle is too brutal and will result in many casualties. I'm here to make money, so I definitely can't do a losing business.

So Joe's plan was to defeat the Teutons in open field battles and weaken them as much as possible, then send the Estites and Livonians to fight it out in street battles.

Weaken the number of their fervent nationalist veterans, while at the right time deploying your own trained armored battalions into battle to reap the rewards of victory, paving the way for Bridget's rise to power.

To achieve this goal, Joe, over the past few weeks, devised a plan with his old subordinates and old friends who now feel nauseous at the sight of numbers.

Although Joe hadn't anticipated the Livonia joining the fight when he was making the plan, it didn't affect his plans; he just needed to make slight adjustments.

So when Joe explained his plan to Commander-in-Chief Esther, Commander-in-Chief Esther exclaimed, "So professional! So reliable! No wonder you're the most dangerous man in the Old World. Ordinary commanders can command their own people, but professional commanders can even command the enemy. No doubt about it, Commander Joe! We're with you!"
Soon the Estites and Livonians began to take action.

As the Estites and Livonia began to move their troops, General Blücher, who commanded the Teutonic "Iron Division," began to sense that something was amiss.

As the commander of a Teutonic army, General Blücher was under constant pressure after Joe brought Wagner to Esté.

Although General Blücher is no longer an officer in the Teutonic Army for certain reasons, this does not prevent him from finding out from his old colleagues whether Joe, the so-called most dangerous man in the Old World, is a real person or just one of the various propaganda campaigns during the war.

Then General Blücher received heartfelt warnings from his former colleagues: “Be careful, that guy is very dangerous. Try not to engage him head-on. If you must fight, concentrate all your artillery and face his armored assault. You only have one chance.”

Upon seeing this warning, General Blücher couldn't help but curse the local Estites, wondering why they had invited this scourge upon them.

After being warned by his colleagues, General Blücher adjusted his strategy.

As the saying goes, as long as I don't want to win, I won't lose.

Based on this idea, General Blücher began to strengthen the defenses of Riga and Parnou, while temporarily halting combat operations in the north and instead intensifying military operations in Lapland and Letoua.

In any case, at least swallow the meat in your mouth first, complete the military operations in these two regions, and then mobilize forces to confront Joe, even though his colleagues said Joe was very dangerous.

However, General Blücher felt that once he had control of those two areas, he could gather hundreds of thousands of troops to beat up Joe's regiment. Even if Joe was strong, he would definitely not be able to withstand such an overwhelming numerical advantage.
However, the situation did not unfold as General Blücher had envisioned, as the Estites began their advance into the Parnu region from the north.

That's normal; after all, they hired Joe, so they must be planning something.

However, in the central region, the Livonia who had only occupied villages began to move, preparing to directly attack the Iron Army's important coastal ports, which General Blücher could not tolerate.

After confirming that Joe's armored forces were now in Parnu in the north, participating in the Parnu offensive.

General Blücher ordered the garrison at Parnu to hold out to the death, in order to buy time for the troops in Riga.

Damn it, the Estites have brought in Joe, and they dare to be arrogant, fine, but what are you Livonia from the forests doing, acting so cocky?! Watch me send out veterans from the Eastern Front who fought in the Great War, and send you all to your deaths!
In General Blücher's plan, as long as he could suppress the Livonia's resistance while the Esti and Jo were besieging Burche, he would be able to hold most of Livonia even with just his manpower advantage.
Things did start out as General Blücher had predicted. Although there were some veterans among the Livians who had fought in the war, their numbers were small, and their weapons and equipment were in disarray, and they lacked training.

Completely outmatched by the well-trained Teutonic Eastern Front troops, they were repelled after a single encounter and began a major retreat.

The retreat of fifteen kilometers in a single day greatly pleased General Blücher. At this rate, he only needed to maintain the offensive for a few more days to defeat the Livonia.

By then, he might even be able to use his victory in Livonia to negotiate with the Estites and persuade them to betray the Livians and withdraw from the war. If they agreed to this condition, it wouldn't be unacceptable for him to return Parnu to them.

With hopes for the future in mind, General Blücher lay down on his bed and fell into a deep sleep.

However, early the next morning, before General Blücher had even woken up, his adjutant shook him awake.

General Blücher, still half-asleep, had just opened his eyes when he heard news that instantly banished any drowsiness.

"General! Something's wrong! Wagner's armored forces have appeared on our flank, and they're launching a breakthrough!"

"what?!"

Sitting in the cargo compartment of a six-wheeled armored vehicle, Joe, looking at the map in front of him, was sniffling in the cold wind.

So far, everything has gone well, although Joe left most of the tanks at Parnu for reasons of motorcycle hours and to lull the Teutons into complacency.

Only six-wheeled trucks carrying a small number of tanks were sent to the vicinity of Riga, but as it turned out, the Teutons really did not expect to be there at this time.

It felt so good to kick the Teutonic troops in the ribs from the side, when they were almost completely unprepared...

The radio operator in front of the vehicle, which had been crammed into the car, was constantly operating the radio amidst the "beep" sounds, confirming the location of each company and their current situation.

Shrinking from the winter wind, Joe sniffed and exclaimed that science and technology were indeed the primary fighting force; the luxurious configuration of a six-wheeled off-road vehicle with a radio had truly achieved its intended effect.

The only problem is that the car's insulation performance should be improved. Joe, trying to curl up in the car to warm himself up, looked at the map in front of him.

With several hours remaining before he could complete the encirclement, if the Teutons failed to react effectively before he finished, he could begin preparing for his next move.

Joe, whose head was throbbing from the cold, rubbed his head and couldn't help but miss the environment inside the tank. Although it was unbearably hot in the summer, it was warm in the winter... He should have brought his own tank with him.

I hope this battle will end soon so I can spend the winter in those warm houses in Riga. Thinking of Rigacho, I also thought of those daring reporters who came here to get the news. I wonder if they will be able to take the photos they want in such cold weather.

Just as Qiao was wondering if these reporters could get the photos they wanted, the reporters who were following the Asti's armored battalion and advancing behind the armored vehicles had already forgotten about cursing the cold weather. They were using all their willpower to convince themselves to persevere and take a few more photos.

Just as they had risked being killed in the past to go to Paris to get the news, after the newspaper learned that Joe had established Wagner Defense Contractors and had gone to Estié, they...

These journalists, who had thought that after the war, there would be no more big news except for the Versailles Conference, flocked to Esti to try and make some big news.

As for why they went to Esti, besides the fact that Joe, the most dangerous man in the Old World, had a lot of attention, although many people didn't say it, people on both sides of the ocean were actually very interested in Joe.

It was precisely because the Verdun Conference, a gathering place for politicians, was simply too chaotic.

Established, veteran journalists can still leverage their personal connections to secure exclusive interviews to complete their assignments, but for many less experienced journalists, all they can do is stand outside Versailles Palace with cameras and notebooks, surrounding those politicians.

See if you can take any photos, or maybe they'll answer some questions when they're in a good mood.

Faced with these journalists who are practically waiting for a rabbit to run into a tree stump, clearly unable to get any exclusive news to improve their careers, and thinking back to those journalists who risked being beaten to death to report on Joe's story, now all of them are celebrities, big and small.

Grit your teeth and stomp your foot—isn't that taking an adventure?

I'll do it too!
However, after arriving in the north, these reporters found that Joe seemed to have changed his ways, staying in the military camp and never going out. When he did go out, he never showed his face. Apart from occasionally being able to photograph the female guards who were rumored to have some ambiguous relationship with Joe, they really couldn't get any news at all.

Then, just when they thought they had wasted their money on the ticket, Wagner's mercenaries suddenly approached them and said that there was definitely big news coming, but they had to come with them and could not publish anything before their permission.

Faced with this request, the reporters, who were originally thinking about what excuse they could use to get their ship tickets reimbursed, all nodded in agreement.

Then they met Joe, the most dangerous man in the Old World, who was always in the spotlight but never gave an interview.

Upon meeting Joe, the reporters discovered that he was quite different from the ruthless and cunning figure portrayed in the news, who resembled an ancient berserker. Joe was not only easygoing but also refined, and he would even tell them a few jokes.

While telling jokes, Joe also offered the reporters a deal they couldn't refuse.

That is, if they agree, they can now receive two salaries. In addition to their newspaper salary, Wagner will also pay them a writing fee if they praise and report on Wagner and the troops trained by Wagner. If the cooperation goes well, Wagner will not mind offering them a long-term contract.

Faced with an opportunity to dig up exclusive news and earn extra money, these reporters naturally wouldn't refuse and readily agreed to Joe's proposal. Then, after being crammed into six-wheeled off-road vehicles and driven around all night, they were suddenly thrust onto the battlefield to film the battle between Wagner and the armored battalion he trained.

Faced with a battlefield filled with flying bullets, the reporters were initially startled, but then, faced with this exclusive news, they began frantically taking photos.

Just like before, Joe's offense was progressing very smoothly.

Although Joe didn't bring many tanks with him during this attack due to transportation issues.

However, the Teutons were not the regular army of yesteryear, with plenty of cannonballs and the ability to fire recklessly.

Joe easily tore open the Teutons' flank, and then, together with the Livonia who had been prepared and had lured the enemy in deep on the first day by feigning defeat, they completed the encirclement of the Teutons who had come out of the city to fight.

Even with some expectation of Joe's fighting prowess, they were still amazed by his ability to so easily surround the Teutonic forces.

They even held Bridget's siege unit in high regard.

After all, Joe did not train and build this force according to the standard model of the Britannian Army, but rather trained it as a mechanized infantry force.

Aside from not providing them with vehicles, their firepower density was entirely based on that of mechanized infantry, with light machine guns deployed to squad levels.

This made the performance of the musketeers equally remarkable in this battle, basically able to hold their own against the Teutons, who had previously been able to overpower them. This made the Livians very interested in this unit trained by Wagner.

In particular, after the Livonia learned that the unit had only been trained by Wagner for a few weeks and that Wagner, as a defense contractor, could actually provide a full range of services from troop training to arming, they expressed that if Joe was willing, they could offer him a training contract.

Joe certainly wouldn't refuse the contract, but he would decline it slightly to save face, since he was a professional and professionals should also show some professional composure.

So Joe said he wouldn't refuse in principle, but now was not a good time to discuss the contract; their primary goal was to drive out the Teutons from Riga.

While the intention was to drive out the Teutons from Riga, Joe did not lead Wagner to initiate street fighting or attacks. Instead, he led Wagner to maintain the blockade line against the main Teutonic force outside the city.

They allowed that armored battalion to participate in the attack on Riga.

Of course, Joe also put a lot of thought into how to get the armored battalion involved in the attack.

Those officers who were more inclined to support Buntania, such as Brigittecho, used various pretexts to keep them outside the city to help Wagner blockade the besieged Teutons.

Joe then used the pretext of helping friendly forces open a breakthrough to get the other, more die-hard nationalists involved in the fighting inside the city.

Even though Joe had surrounded the main Teutonic force, the task of retaking Riga was not easy. The rigid Teutons held firm to every inch of the land, causing the attacking forces to suffer heavy losses.

During these attacks, Brigitte of the Armored Battalion began to rise rapidly.

Because those fanatical nationalists fell before him, Bridget quickly became the acting battalion commander. At the same time, Joe would always let Wagner create opportunities for Bridget to shine, such as having Bridget lead the final blow after weakening the Teutonic defenses.

Even occasionally, after Wagner encountered some tough nuts in Livonia, Joe would send Wagner to weaken the tough nut before letting Bridget take it over.

Journalists willing to cooperate with Wagner also began to tout how Brigitte commanded the Brigitte Battalion in battle.

Soon after, under Joe's manipulation, the Teutons outside the city surrendered when they ran out of ammunition and food. The Teutons inside the city, seeing no hope of holding out, also evacuated Riga by boat.

With the liberation of Riga, while Joe received an army training contract in Livonia, Bridget also earned the title of Baltic Tiger.

Just as Bridget was gaining fame, the Estites faced a somewhat awkward situation.

That was Joe, whom they had paid to hire, who helped their temporary allies liberate their capital, which was certainly a very prestigious thing.

However, the situation was rather awkward, as allies had liberated their capitals while they had not yet captured Parnu.

The Estians also had some complaints about Joe, believing that Parnu couldn't be taken not only because Joe had taken the main Wagner force to Livonia to fight the main Teutonic force, but also because Joe didn't allow the rest of the Wagner troops to join the street fighting, only letting them assist in the blockade outside the city.

However, with Joe leading Wagner's main force back, no one brought it up again.

After all, the fierce street fighting had caused them heavy losses, so even if they had grievances, they wouldn't vent them on Joe now.

Upon returning to Esti, Joe immediately began preparations to deal with the Teutons of Parnu.

The Teutons, who were already struggling to hold on in Parnu, realized that the war was hopeless after Joe returned with Wagner. So they launched a last-ditch counterattack to buy time, inflicting considerable losses on the Estite nationalists. After buying time, they abandoned a lot of supplies and fled by ship.

Although Esti and Livonia had recovered most of their territory, their troops also suffered considerable losses in the battle, and the armored battalion commanded by Bridget fully demonstrated their fighting strength.

So what happened next was a natural progression. Although the Teutons were gone, the Lusians were still there. Faced with enormous defense pressure, both Esti and Livonia chose to accept the comprehensive military training program and defense contracting plan offered by Joel.

Of course, since both countries had just broken away from Lucia at this time, and Lucia was known for its poverty in the Old World, neither Esti nor Livonia could afford the comprehensive military training package proposed by Joe.

The two tank battalions and the air brigade planned by Joe alone would be an unbearable economic burden for both countries.

However, facing the cash-strapped governments of both countries, Joe stated that Wagner is a commercial company with flexible business practices, and that regarding the lack of funds, they could fully complete the transaction through joint development and deferred payment.

The so-called joint development deferred payment refers to the development contracts signed between the two governments and Wagner Group to develop the natural resources of the two countries.

Although these two plots of land are traditionally perceived as somewhat desolate, this is not actually the case. The shallow waters here not only contain exploited shale oil, but also rich reserves of peat and phosphate.

However, just like most of Russia's natural resources in the past, large-scale exploitation has not been carried out due to a lack of funds.

Besides minerals and crude oil, this area is also rich in other resources, including forests and water resources.

In addition, being located along the coast with abundant rivers, even the most troublesome transportation is not a problem.

Therefore, Joe proposed that they sign a contract in which the state would grant Joe the development rights to these natural resources, and then Wagner would hold a 51% controlling stake to jointly develop these resources with the local government.

The reason Wagner has to take 51% is twofold: firstly, most of the revenue from these resources is used to pay for Wagner's military projects; secondly, since both countries are currently poor, Wagner also invests in the initial stages of these resource developments.

The two governments essentially don't need to invest anything; they just need to sign a document to obtain security guarantees from Wagner, a modern elite force, a number of resource-based enterprises, and solve local employment problems for free.

Faced with such a good thing, both governments thought that such surveillance was something even a turtle in a wishing well wouldn't dare to have. If they disagreed, would they still be human?

So, after a brief argument with Joe about the profits from these mines and businesses, he signed the documents.

Even Joe didn't expect that the two governments would sign the document so easily.

Although theoretically, this contract seems to put Wagner at a disadvantage, as he was essentially getting something for nothing from both governments, having to pay for resource development for both countries and even provide military protection at his own expense.

However, the reality was quite different. If the plan had been successfully implemented, Joe would have controlled the major companies in both countries, and the military would have been filled with pro-Bunitania or even Wagnerian officers. Joe would have become the mastermind behind both countries.

In fact, when news of Wagner signing a comprehensive defense agreement with the two countries reached London, even His Majesty George was shocked by Joe's extravagant spending.

As someone who has seen it all, His Majesty George's first reaction was, "The Burgundy Barat Company, which was dissolved years ago, is back?!"
His Majesty George's first reaction was to immediately have his steward send a telegram to George, asking if he had enough initial development funds and if he needed any assistance.
Faced with His Majesty's goodwill, Qiao naturally did not refuse. After receiving His Majesty's money, Qiao wrote back to His Majesty, saying that such a large project could not be handled by himself alone. Therefore, it would be great if His Majesty could recommend some honest and reliable people to promote the development and construction of the project.

He also plans to sell shares of this project on the London financial market under the name of Beihai Development.

Joe's statement sent shockwaves through the business and industrial circles of Bonitania.

Everyone originally thought that after Joe had pulled off such a big feat, he would choose to keep it all to himself.

Although its land area is relatively small, it is still a country on the Old World, and the difficulty of development is not the same as that of colonies on the Dark Continent or other places.

Even with such a juicy piece of meat, Joe wasn't going to keep it all to himself. Instead, he invited everyone to share it. Joe is so generous and righteous!
Enough said. Wagner's business is our business. Old Joe, just tell us how much money you want and how many men you want!
While receiving strong support domestically, Joe didn't forget to do some small things as well.

Since both Esti and Livonia had signed a package of agreements with Wagner, Joe brokered a mutual defense treaty between the two countries and even set up a framework for a joint command headquarters for joint defense.

With the signing of this defense treaty, all the forces in the already chaotic East must now take the rise of this alliance seriously.

After all, the collapse of the Lucia Empire was hasty and chaotic, and the territories of these newly formed countries were in disarray. Therefore, for these newly formed countries, the location of their territories basically depended on where their troops could reach.

Clearly, in this great war to carve up the corpse of the Lucian Empire, these two small countries, which originally could only get scraps, now seem to have earned a place on the table.

With the signing of the defense treaty, Wagner forces will be contracted to provide security for the new troops in Esti and Livonia before they complete their training, a high-profile announcement by Wagner, which has also proven its combat capabilities in the East.

From now until the end of the contract, Esti and Livonia will be under the protection of Wagner Corporation, and any military action against either country will be met with the strongest possible response from Wagner Corporation.

Of course, Joe couldn't accomplish such a daunting task with just one regiment, so while making the declaration, he began recruiting across the Old World. Wagner was willing to offer well-paid jobs to anyone with military experience who wanted to find their value on the battlefield, if they could pass the test.

Of course, many people have strong opinions about Wagner's statements and actions in the East.

The people with the strongest opinions were neither the United States, which advocated for a new world order, nor the Teutons, who had just been beaten again, but the Italians on the other side of the continent.

Although the results of the war were not significant, the Italians believed that as a victorious nation, they were worthy of a seat at the table because of their betrayal of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and their bloody battle with the main Austro-Hungarian forces in the Alps.

However, the Italians felt that their country was small and weak, so they did not seek to consume too much; they were content with consuming the Adriatic coast region.

After all, even the Lucia military government, which originally had nothing to do with this place, has now been able to acquire a large area of ​​land here. We Italians have paid such a high price and made such a huge sacrifice to get a piece of land on the Adriatic coast. Is that too much to ask?

However, the Italians did not expect that the Americans would refuse.

(End of this chapter)