Chapter 72: The Prisoner Camp
TL: Etude
On the morning of the 4th, Malron Ganard awoke from his sleep, his expression somber as he finished his morning routine and headed to the castles dining room for breakfast.
He had dreamt again of the scene where he overheard the conspiracy, an incident that had profoundly impacted his psyche.
His sworn brother, Paul Grayman, had already led the troops to Baylding yesterday to quell the rebels. Malron wondered how the battle was faring now.
He had great faith in Paul. Seeing how confident Paul was, Malron believed the war would soon come to an end.
After breakfast, the Grayman familys butler, Philip, approached him, saying that the steward Ford and Abbott requested his presence, leading him to the hall for their meeting.
Congratulations, Lord Count! Ford and Abbott rose to greet him as soon as they saw him.
Malron, puzzled, asked, What has happened?
Old Ford explained, Yesterday afternoon, Lord Grayman defeated the traitorous Angelo, Aibut, and others. The city of Butuya is now under our control.
Malrons mouth dropped open in disbelief, This this quickly? Didnt he just leave yesterday?
He had thought that even if they could rout Angelo and others in open battle, with Butuyas walls and reserves, it would take at least a week to breach the city. He had spent half the night worrying about the safety of the citys inhabitants.
The troops of Angelo and others were merely a bunch of farmers, newly conscripted, a disorganized mob. Even though they maintained some private soldiers, it did not change the overall situation, Hansel, who had seen the soldiers patrolling the streets of Butuya, commented. They were slack and disheveled, far inferior to the elite soldiers of Lakeheart Town.
Malron clasped his hands in a prayerful gesture, Thanks be to the Lord of Light!
Steward Ford smiled at Malron, Lord Grayman requests your immediate return to Butuya to stabilize the hearts of the people of Baylding.
Malron nodded, Alright, I will leave at once.
Paul, in the lords mansion of Butuya, listened to the report on the outcome of yesterdays battle.
According to the information obtained from interrogating several knights and leaders, the rebel army of over 2000 men consisted of about 400 private soldiers previously under Angelo and others, around 300 mercenaries, and the rest were farmers or serfs conscripted from various parts of Baylding.
After the battle, the Alda army captured 823 prisoners of various sorts, while the rest scattered during the fight. Including the knights killed by shrapnel, a total of 98 enemy soldiers were killed, not counting a large number of wounded.
He instructed the officer in charge of the prisoners, Carefully screen them. If they are farmers who were recently conscripted, feed them well and let them go home to save our food supplies. If they are former private soldiers of the traitors, detain them temporarily until the situation stabilizes and then release them. As for the knights, do not release them without my order.
The officer asked, Arent you going to keep those serfs for yourself? Technically, they are not prisoners, but spoils of war.
Paul was taken aback and then said, Let them choose for themselves. If they wish to go to Alda, I will make them free citizens. If they want to return to their original places, dont stop them.
Despite finding Pauls decision unusual, the officer noted it down.
Paul continued, As for those who were killed, release the news of our victory and let their families come to claim them. If no one claims them or if they cant wait, then bury them.
As for the Alda army itself, there were only 16 lightly wounded and 3 seriously injured, but none were life-threatening.
This was largely thanks to the extensive use of firearms. When the enemy approached, a volley of lead bullets or a few thrown grenades could scatter a large group.
A soldier in charge of management hesitantly asked, What about those severely wounded prisoners who are still alive?
How severe are their injuries?
They are incapacitated, some even still unconscious.
Paul was troubled and after a moment said, Save those who can be saved. I dont want the Alda army to bear a reputation for cold-hearted cruelty. Take me to see where these prisoners are being kept.
Upon arriving at the camp for the severely wounded prisoners, the smell was unbearable, a mix of rotting flesh, strong liquor, herbs, olive oil (used to stop bleeding), and various other indistinguishable odors.
The camp was filled with the constant groans of pain, continually assaulting Pauls senses.
The Alda army did not yet have dedicated military doctors, relying on those with experience in treating wounds, though their methods were crude.
Those hit directly by solid cannonballs almost never survived. Those in the camp were mainly wounded by spears, bullets, and shrapnel.
Those injured by spears were manageable, but for those wounded by firearms or shrapnel, they could only follow the old methods used for arrow wounds. They tied the patient down, stuffed a wooden stick in their mouth, and then used a knife to dig the lead bullets out of the wounds, applying herbal ointment before bandaging.
For those whose limbs were obviously beyond saving, there was only one optionamputation with a saw.
Paul happened to witness such a gruesome surgery and could only glance before quickly exiting the tent.
Bryce quietly said to him, Those who obviously cannot be saved, should we He mimed a throat-cutting gesture.
After an internal struggle, Paul reluctantly said, Give them a quick end.
Even for the wounded prisoners who were treated, their fate was left to chance. In this world with backward medical technology and almost no concept of hygiene, even those who temporarily survived were likely to die from infections like tetanus, with a very high mortality rate.
This inspection served as a wake-up call for Paulit was time to establish a more formal medical system, especially in the military.
In previous battles, the Alda army had relied on equipment superiority and systemic advantages to overpower their opponents, suffering minimal casualties. But what about the future?
In the event they encountered an equally matched or even more powerful enemy in the future, there would undoubtedly be a large number of severely wounded soldiers, making battlefield medical care extremely important. They couldnt rely on these primitive medical techniques or the so-called holy water of quacks to treat their precious soldiers.
Absolutely not! Each soldier was valuable, representing much effort and investment. With the current small size of the army, the death of each soldier, especially the experienced veterans, was a significant loss. These veterans were the seeds for future army expansion.
Moreover, a more advanced medical system was needed for civilians. For instance, the mortality rate for both mothers and infants during childbirth was extremely high.
Paul recalled information from his previous life, indicating that the maternal mortality rate in ancient China was as high as 30%, and the infant mortality rate was around 20% before the establishment of modern China. In this world, similar to the Middle Ages in terms of societal development, these figures would likely be equally grim.
Even if we cant immediately improve the level of medical knowledge, we should at least raise the level of nursing care, which is relatively easier to achieve.
Paul looked around the dirty and chaotic wounded camp, thinking this.
He remembered that during the Crimean War, despite the presence of military doctors in the British army, the mortality rate among the wounded was still very high. That changed with the arrival of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.
Although Nightingale did not possess advanced medical skills, her measures of cleaning the wards, washing soldiers clothes, improving ventilation and drainage dramatically reduced the British soldiers mortality rate from 42% to 2.2%. She earned the title The Lady with the Lamp for her meticulous care of soldiers.
Nightingale used her investigations and military data to analyze soldiers health using statistical knowledge, confirming that the number of deaths from disease and infection during wartime far exceeded those caused directly by combat.
Paul decided to start by improving the hygiene of the prisoner camp. From the day he took command, he had always emphasized sanitation in the barracks, so the soldiers quarters were clean. However, the same care was not extended to the prisoners quarters. After all, why go to such lengths for a bunch of captives?
He summoned the officer in charge of the prisoner camp and severely criticized him.
The prisoner camp is so dirty and messy. What if an epidemic breaks out and infects our own men?
The Count was furious, and the officer didnt dare to utter a word in response.
A series of nursing measures for the wounded were proposed, such as timely disposal of garbage and dirty water, maintaining ventilation in the tents, and boiling the woundeds clothes for sterilization.
What is sterilization? Just follow the instructions.
After giving his directives, Paul returned to the lords mansion. The guard informed him that Count Malron Ganard was already inside, waiting for him.
So fast? He was a bit surprised.
Well, it was time to have a proper talk with his sworn brother.
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