Chapter 1232 The seeds of hatred
June 1916.
Macedonia.
Bilatto is a mountain forest at the junction of Macedonia and Greece. Of course, after the Ottoman Empire withdrew from Macedonia, it changed hands several times and finally fell into the hands of the Kingdom of Serbia.
But the good times did not last long. Now the Kingdom of Serbia has been wiped out by the armies of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and its ally Bulgaria. Its government and army had to move into the mountains, and neighboring countries continued to resist.
Entering summer, the entire Balkan Peninsula seems extremely hot, and the cicada cries can be heard throughout the jungle. The soldiers of the Kingdom of Dalmatia are sweating on the border, searching for the remnants of the Kingdom of Serbia.
A small army was walking through the mountains and forests of Macedonia, walking on the mountain trails with a dejected look on their faces.
Makaric listened to the cicadas chirping above his head and said impatiently: "I heard that farmers in Macedonia like to bury cicadas in the soil, so that they can easily get money, and now I just want to bury these cicadas in the soil." He was stabbed down from the tree and then crushed hard under his leather shoes. "
Talos, the squad leader of the squad, seemed not to hear the complaints in Makaric's words. He said: "The war has been going on for so long, and now the fighting in the Kingdom of Serbia is basically over. The only pity is that the Serbs escaped to Greece, so we We must strictly guard this place to prevent them from regrouping and infiltrating. "
"Although Bilatto is indeed not a place for people, we can't delay the overall situation because of this. And be happy! If it's winter, I guess you won't be willing."
The Balkan Peninsula, located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, is deeply affected by the Mediterranean climate. The Mediterranean climate is very special. Its rainfall is mainly concentrated in winter, while summer is relatively dry and hot.
Makariqi immediately thought of the winter days, and then shuddered and replied: "That's not possible. Although it is cooler here in winter, the roads in the rainy season are not as easy as now! And in this kind of mountain forest, in winter, When the clothes are wet from the rain and the soles of the shoes are muddy, the situation is truly fatal.”
Talos said with a smile: "You have not suffered too much. You must know that when our generation first arrived in Neretva, it was the real struggle. The situation and comparison in the Neretva area at that time Lato is very similar, with endless mountains and forests everywhere and the terrain is quite rugged.”
"At that time, when we, a farm worker, first arrived in Neretva, we had only one job, which was to cut down the forest. This was actually not the saddest thing. The saddest thing was to deal with the tree roots."
“There are towering trees everywhere in Neretva, with thick and big roots that are deeply rooted in the soil. Some places cannot even be described as soil at all, mixed with a lot of gravel flowed down from the mountains. "
"A few of my old friends and I took a shovel with a warped edge and cleared it piece by piece. There were no cattle, horses or other livestock. All the work was carried on our shoulders and carried by our hands..."
Once there is dissatisfaction in the team, Talos likes to talk about the energy of his youth. This can indeed bring some comfort to the entire team. After all, pain comes from comparison.
In this protracted war, low morale is always unavoidable. Of course, the current situation of the Royal Dalmatian Army is not bad.
At the beginning of last year, the Austro-Hungarian Empire basically ended its overall war against the Kingdom of Serbia. Currently, the majority of the troops remaining in Serbia are second-line troops.
The newly reorganized army of the Kingdom of Dalmatia left more personnel in Serbia. After all, in the entire Balkan Peninsula, the Habsburgs could not find any local troops more loyal than this group of mixed-blood Germans in the Kingdom of Dalmatia.
The spread of separatist ideas in Croatia and Bosnia led the Habsburgs to distrust the troops they recruited from both regions, at least not to station them on Yugoslav lands.
There is no doubt that the Kingdom of Dalmatia, which originally belonged to Bosnia and Croatia, is the most suitable place to serve as a source of troops. After all, Vienna deeply realizes that these Germans, who are not of pure blood, cannot mix with the Yugoslavs.
Of course, another reason that cannot be ignored is that the Kingdom of Dalmatia can be turned into a sharp knife inserted into the hinterland of the Balkans and used as a weapon for the Austro-Hungarian Empire to disrupt the unity of the Balkans. Obviously, this decision was quite correct for the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Talorin spoke to his soldiers without saying a word, but soon his years of combat experience gave him a sense of crisis.
He stretched out his arm to signal everyone to quiet down, and his expression became serious. Even Makaric, a talkative man, noticed the unkind look on the face of Squad Leader Talarolin and closed his mouth.
Talorin tilted his head and listened in the direction of the jungle with one ear. He covered his ear with one hand and listened carefully to the movements in the jungle.
"Shouldn't you?" He muttered.
"Squad leader, what did you find?" Makari asked in a low voice.
Talorin said in a slight tone: "I seemed to hear something unusual in the jungle just now, but now I'm not sure, maybe it's just an auditory hallucination. After all, you have to be on tenterhooks every day here, and it's normal to be suspicious. "
"I see, it seems like it's nothing serious!" Makariqi breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed.
But Talolin did not relax. He said in a solemn tone: "Now is not the time to relax. This is not a good place, but the border between the two countries. Any situation may happen."
"So be careful. Everyone is ready for battle. The next patrol must be more serious. Pay attention to the terrain. If an accident occurs, quickly find a bunker and be ready to fight at any time."
Faced with Talolin's caution, Makarichi said: "Squad leader, are you making a fuss out of a molehill?"
Talorin shook his head and said: "My hunch has always been accurate. My intuition tells me that we seem to be being watched by others. Next, you should try your best to behave as usual and don't reveal any flaws, but be careful. Don't If something happens, you really can’t even shoot a bullet.”
Afterwards, Talolin continued on his way with the group of new recruits. Talolin pretended as if nothing had happened, but his heart was always tense.
And when Talorin and his party left, the branch suddenly moved in the direction where Talorin's ear was facing just now, and a man with a gun jumped out of the tree.
He looked gloomily at the direction in which the soldiers of the Kingdom of Dalmatia disappeared, muttering to himself that it was so dangerous to almost be discovered just now.
But it was not the time to consider this matter now. He sorted out the leaves on his body, and then swaggered across the path towards the northern part of the jungle. After all, the Dalmatian Kingdom's patrol had just passed by at this time, so it should be relatively safe. .
"This group of Vienna **** must not have thought of what they missed, but it is normal. Judging from their faces, except for the squad leader who may be a veteran, they are not very old. This should be considered a good piece of information."
"If the inference is correct, the Austro-Hungarian Empire should have put its main forces on the frontline battlefield with Russia. As long as this fact is confirmed in depth, it will be a good opportunity for the kingdom's next counterattack."
The man said to himself, then followed the familiar terrain and headed down the mountain. Obviously, he knew the situation here much better than the officers and soldiers of the Kingdom of Dalmatia. The trees covering the sky and the rugged terrain could not stop him at all. His path down the mountain.
After pushing aside the weeds and shrubs, an unclear trail appeared in front of him. It was obvious that this trail was difficult to find, but the man found the trail down the mountain quite easily.
(End of chapter)