Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 902

Chapter 895: The Meaning of a Meal

After initial contact, the expeditionary force and the Saints reached a provisional agreement to establish a joint command.

While political and economic ties were not addressed in the interim agreement, a substantive military alliance had been established.

In this provisional agreement, the Alliance showed considerable respect for the Saints,

after all, as a newly established group .

While cooperation within the joint command wasn’t particularly close, it was generally considered a shared command.

In actual ground combat, when both sides fought side by side, they would typically establish a leader for a particular direction or battle, and this could be someone from either side.

Initially, the primary players in the ground battles were still the Saints and their assembled mortal forces—the Crusades.

After all, they were fighting on home turf, familiar with both the situation on Sentinel and the enemy.

After the Alliance troops landed, it was natural for them to initially defer to their command and humbly learn from them.

However, the Alliance soon took the lead in the battle.

The reason was simple: money.

And often, wealth itself signifies military prowess.

…

Raymond Weiss had heard many reports from the front lines.

He had no doubt that the Alliance army was wealthy.

Just look at the sleek, new warships.

However, given his years in the Human Empire, he still lacked a realistic idea of the extent of this so-called wealth. Until

one day, something struck him as truly profound.

While en route to the front lines to reinforce a difficult battle,

he saw a company of Alliance troops retreating from the front lines.

This company looked like standard Alliance Army soldiers, complete with full combat uniforms, lightweight ceramite vests, and helmets. No power armor, and only a few exoskeletons. They had about ten heavy bolter machine guns and two individual plasma beam cannons, all used for positioning and providing fixed firepower. Five melta guns, plus a full truckload of ready-to-use anti-armor rockets, high-explosive grenade launchers, and platoon-level mortars.

Raymond Weiss wasn’t envious at all.

What’s wrong? Our elite infantry battalion in the Crusades can even have this kind of equipment!

You’re calling this the Alliance’s line-filling cannon fodder company?

The Alliance Army doesn’t have that organizational designation. Don’t lie to me!

He could only console himself with this, trying to find some peace of mind.

Even more comforting was when, passing by, he overheard a few ordinary soldiers from the company complaining about their food.

They were berating the logistics troops, calling them a bunch of pigs and dogs. They’d toiled and fought on the front lines, only to be forced to eat this pig food. They’d been eating it for nearly half a month, and there hadn’t been any improvement!

Raymond Weiss wasn’t a dark-minded person; he wouldn’t take pleasure in the Alliance soldiers’ discomfort. But… there had to be some balance. Otherwise, wouldn’t the Crusades, the mortal army he’d proudly built and the pillar of the Seven Star Corridor for thirty years, look so underwhelming?

But his joy soon faded, and his expression even changed.

He saw the Alliance ‘cannon fodder’ complaining about the “pig food” they were talking about. What on earth was that?

It was a standard individual supply pack, containing a self-heating meal pack containing high-calorie carbohydrates like flour, rice, and white bread, along with sauces, meat, and dried vegetables. It heated and was ready to eat within a minute of opening.

A snack, usually sandwich cookies or a small piece of cake.

Two canned meats, which looked like some kind of animal and seafood meat.

There were also some snacks—cheese sticks, candy, jelly, energy bars, chocolate bars—but the mix was more random.

Quick supplements, a combination of energy, vitamins, and protein, each one enough to last a full meal. Soldiers were too lazy to eat these, unless they were in combat and had no time to even use their supply packs,

then they’d just grab a stick for a quick bite. There were also drink packs, usually in the form of powdered tea, beverage powder, milk powder, instant coffee powder—everything you could mix with water and drink instantly.

What did Raymond Weiss say?

He thought about it; he hadn’t eaten this well since the war began!

Space Marines are physically strong, and their energy expenditure is naturally high. A single meal certainly consumes far more calories than an ordinary soldier. However, the variety and flavors weren’t nearly as diverse. It was probably just some kind of multi-energy bar, a few extra, or even just heated-up synthetic starch blocks…

Of course, it wasn’t that he couldn’t afford it.

He was the leader, and if he absolutely had to satisfy his cravings, what couldn’t he? Even a voracious Space Marine wouldn’t go broke eating alone.

It was just that he cared less about food and was determined to show off, sharing the same hardships as the lower-ranking soldiers.

This example had some effect.

When ordinary Crusaders couldn’t even get enough on synthetic starch, the thought that their leader, the Emperor’s Angel of Death, a noble living saint, ate the same food as them might have lifted their morale.

Indeed, it did.

However, that effect was still a far cry from the Alliance’s commitment to ensuring that every soldier was well-fed. In comparison, Raymond Weiss could clearly see that his actions were just a show, put on when he had no other choice.

Does eating well guarantee victory?

As a seasoned commander, Raymond Weiss’s answer was unequivocally: Absolutely!

Eating well ensures victory.

No matter how advanced their equipment, soldiers’ tactical maneuvers require sufficient energy and a strong physique.

Simply feeding soldiers might maintain their energy, but maintaining their physique is more difficult; they must eat well.

And eating well also boosts morale. Alliance soldiers complain about “pig food,” but it doesn’t stop them from fighting bravely. But if they were fed actual pig food, it would be a completely different story.

And most terrifying of all, the implications of this phenomenon of soldiers being well-fed are significant.

The Alliance’s productivity, the Alliance army’s logistical support… these are the keys to victory.

Food supply is, of course, a crucial component of logistics. Soldiers need weapons and equipment to fight, but they also need to be well fed. However, once basic food supplies are ensured, the importance of food quality quickly diminishes.

After all, military operations require more than just the quality of food.

The Alliance’s rationing of military supplies is undoubtedly flawless. They even have enough surplus to ensure the soldiers’ taste for food, even to the point of developing their discerning palates.

If even taste can be guaranteed, then there’s no need to worry about anything else.

…

After fighting on the front lines and securing a key offensive objective, Raymond Weiss returned to base camp without forgetting his earlier experience.

He made a point of checking out the Alliance’s dining experience.

It was an Alliance division headquarters, and the soldiers’ dining area was essentially a field mess hall.

There were more than one, and more than one style.

Numerous dining carts served as kitchens. To Raymond Weiss, the cooks in the logistics department looked no different than chefs in a high-end restaurant. They expertly brought pot after pot of freshly prepared food to the table.

At that moment, if it weren’t for the surrounding wilderness and the uniforms of the diners, Raymond Weiss would have thought he was in a food court.

Fine, give up.

Meanwhile, another thought began to grow within this soil.

He now had a good understanding of what the Alliance had done over the past hundred years, since the Age of Cataclysm.

The expeditionary force had thoroughly educated him.

He wasn’t entirely skeptical.

This stuff couldn’t lie.

The morale of the Alliance soldiers was indirect evidence of this; the Alliance controlled over ten of the Empire’s Dark Side cosmic domains, occupying between one-third and one-half of the Dark Side’s territory. This proved the success of the Dark Side expedition.

As for legitimacy… what the hell! Only those who could achieve such feats could claim the greatest legitimacy!

Raymond Weiss had had enough of Holy Terra.   Gu Hang had already set his sights on this area since the beginning of the Vigilance Star Campaign.

The   strategic value of opening a passage to the other side of the Empire is self-evident.   The presence of the Saints here is an even greater advantage.   Undoubtedly, the Seven Star Corridor, completely controlled by humans rather than occupied by Chaos, has saved the Alliance Expeditionary Force a great deal of trouble.   Otherwise, if all seven planets were occupied, their proximity to the Scarlet Scar would practically trap them within it. If Chaos had taken over this area, within ten years, all seven worlds would have been semi-Warp-ified. At that point, a battle would be tantamount to an expedition into the Warp, with demons spawning endlessly from the very soil of the worlds. The entire Western Expeditionary Force would likely have to deploy the same force as in the Omgeria Campaign to even hope of victory, resulting in devastating losses.   But now, a single advance fleet is more than enough to handle the situation.   Gu Hang’s orders have been passed on to Western Command.   Yan Fangxu has a crucial task ahead: defending the Seven Star Corridor. At the same time, a key focus must be on clearing the Mingshu Star Region, which connects to the Seven Star Corridor on the Dark Side, to ensure the stability of these worlds.   Immediately thereafter, the Alliance’s administration will rapidly adapt, implementing alliance-wide reforms directly within the Mingshu Star Region. With a strong military presence, this process should proceed smoothly. Substantial investment will follow, aiming to transform the Mingshu Star Region into a key frontline military and industrial hub, enabling convenient resupply of the Seven Star Corridor.   The ultimate goal is to secure the Seven Star Corridor. With the Saints’ headquarters and the support of the Mursiphat Star Region in front, and the Alliance-built Mingshu Star Region in the back, the Seven Star Corridor’s stability will be greatly enhanced.   Furthermore, after the construction of the Seven Stars’ Thunder Torch Tower is complete, Gu Hang will also dedicate some of his attention to maintaining this passage.   Then, once the Seven Star Corridor is stabilized, the Alliance can consider using this corridor to cross the Scarlet Scar, transforming the Dark Side expedition into a true operation to reclaim the entire empire and its territory.   Whether this part of the mission should be handed over to the Western Expeditionary Force or a new front be formed to handle it specifically would be a matter of later discussion.   Another surprise came from the Saints themselves.   When the Battle of Vigil Star was nearly concluded, and the Fourth Advance Fleet had provided a batch of supplies to the Saints and the Crusades free of charge, as they were preparing to move deeper into the corridor, Raymond Weiss proposed some conditions.   He hoped that, in the name of the Saints, as the protectors of the Mersiphat star field, and as the Living Saint of the Ecclesiarchy, they could sign a series of deeper cooperation agreements with the Alliance and the Imperial Dark Side Committee.   In theory, the Saints would not join the Alliance, but in reality, Raymond Weiss’s initial proposal was to join the Imperial Dark Side Committee.   To this end, they were even willing to accept Alliance officials from the Mercifat Sector and investment from the Alliance, even if it came at the cost of sharing control. They were willing to integrate the Saints Chapter itself, the twelve Saints Chapters it had mobilized, and the so-called Crusades, established by the Ecclesiarchy under the guise of Chapter Auxiliary Forces, into the Alliance’s operational command structure…   Of course, there were many more details involved. Raymond Weiss wasn’t selling himself for nothing; he also made numerous demands. For example, he demanded increased Alliance investment in the Mercifat Sector, guarantees for the religion, investments in the defense of the Seven Star Corridor, and subsequent expeditions to the so-called Imperial Holy Territory on the other side of the corridor…   Gu Hang had no objection to any of these.   Many of Raymond Weiss’s demands were already part of the Alliance’s plan; it was simply a matter of increasing the intensity of the effort.   The additional investment, in exchange for the “loyalty” of a fledgling Chapter, was a truly remarkable value.   In this battle, the Seven Star Corridor itself was naturally the Alliance’s greatest concern, its strategic value immense.   The Saints’ Legion was Gu Hang’s second priority.   Previously, he had been pondering how to find a breakthrough point to coax this legion into his hands.   Unexpectedly, they presented themselves to him.   With this initial intention, even in name only, the Saints were now ‘one of ours.’   Gu Hang was eagerly awaiting how the system’s legion interface would assess the Saints’ Legion’s status.   This was the first time he had the opportunity to have a fledgling legion recognized by the system.   (End of this chapter)