Resettlement

In the military camp in Croatia, the disarmament work was complete.

The remaining warriors were re-formed and completely transformed into the Imperial Army's standard 3,000-man legions.

Previously, the Hungarian army did not have a fixed organization; it was composed of various groups led by high-ranking generals.

The smallest units might only have a little over a thousand men, while powerful commanders could lead armies of over ten thousand.

Within these armies, there was almost no fixed structure; apart from the smallest unit of five men, the intermediate-level organization was decided by the commander's preference.

Since Laszlo had taken over these troops, he naturally had to follow his rules, and the first step was to standardize the troop organization for easier command.

This army, led by the newly appointed Royal Military Governor Perényi, set off for Pressburg, an important town to the northwest, where they would establish a garrison camp and await the Emperor's orders.

Unlike the elite warriors who were happy to remain in the army, a large number of disbanded soldiers were gathered on an open grassy field, their eyes filled with worry and unease.

They either complained in low voices or stared blankly into the distance, unsure of where their future lay.

At this moment, General Ester entered the camp with a group of officials and began to read out the resettlement plan. They had already sent away the first batch of discharged veterans, and now they had to deal with the last batch.

Once they were settled, he would have to take his men to Split, where the work was quite heavy and would likely take a considerable amount of time to complete.

"Listen up, everyone!" General Ester's voice echoed through the bustling camp. "The Emperor has not forgotten your contributions to Hungary. As compensation for you, the benevolent Emperor has provided various resettlement options for everyone.

Those willing to go to Bulgaria will receive fertile land and the protection of the Royal Teutonic Order. You will enjoy three years of tax exemption and also receive farm tools and seeds to start a new life there.

For those unwilling to go to Bulgaria, if you have property and family in Hungary, you can return home and farm peacefully, also enjoying two years of tax exemption and receiving the most generous severance pay.

If you have neither property nor wish to leave Hungary, you can choose to serve as a Sheriff in the royal domain, responsible for maintaining public order and patrolling roads, receiving a stable monthly salary."

After hearing the terms offered by Ester, the soldiers began to whisper and discuss among themselves.

An old soldier frowned and said to his companion beside him, "Go to Bulgaria? It's a strange place, will it work?

And it's not like we didn't see it during the Eastern Crusade a few years ago; there's no fertile land there..."

His companion shrugged helplessly, "But what can we do if we stay here? All the land at home was sold before we left our hometown, so we can only try our luck."

In a nearby tent, the officials responsible for registering destinations and distributing severance pay were extremely busy.

The soldiers queued up, one by one, to register. Soldiers with different choices were assigned to different areas and then arranged uniformly.

Some soldiers hesitated repeatedly, deciding to take advantage of their youth to venture into Bulgaria, hoping they might truly start anew on new land.

Others chose to stay locally, hoping to find a job in the area. As for those who owned land in Hungary, they were almost few and far between.

Most soldiers joined the army because their land was encroached upon or sold off due to poor management, which led them to be almost at their wit's end.

You know, fighting the Ottomans at this time could be said to be the most dangerous job; if they had a choice, they wouldn't have gone down this path.

Now, letting these warriors, who had been professional soldiers for many years, return to a peaceful life would be somewhat unaccustomed.

In another special tent, some wounded and sick soldiers were centrally accommodated.

They fought for the Emperor, resulting in physical disabilities, making them unable to engage in heavy manual labor.

Laszlo specifically ordered them to receive more pensions. As for their future lives, it could only depend on their respective fates.

After all, he was not omnipotent, nor was he a great philanthropist; to be able to do this much was already benevolent and righteous.

Soldiers who chose to return home left on their own after receiving their severance pay and tax exemption certificates.

Those soldiers who wished to become grassroots officials gathered and went to Budapest for simple training, after which they would be assigned to different villages and towns to take up their posts.

And the soldiers who chose to go to Bulgaria were organized and took boats down the Danube River to open up new land in Bulgaria.

The number of young soldiers who chose this option was the largest. Laszlo persuaded the Hungarian Church to donate to these brave warriors who were developing infidel lands and defending the Catholic frontier, and he also provided some food and supplies himself.

As the resettlement work gradually progressed, the disbanded soldiers also gradually emerged from the gloom and found a new direction in life.

For this work, Laszlo spared no effort in investing a large amount of manpower and resources, maintaining full attention throughout.

For no other reason than that disbanding an army itself carries considerable risk; if not handled properly, it can lead to a mutiny, so it is impossible to be too cautious.

In western Bulgaria, near Serbia, in Kyustendil, the Order of Saint George had completely controlled the city.

Now this Bulgarian city, adjacent to the capital Sofia, became their new base.

The Teutonic Order organized German immigrants to cultivate the surrounding land, developing both agriculture and animal husbandry simultaneously.

After years of war, Bulgaria's population sharply declined, and there was a severe labor shortage, leading to a large amount of land lying fallow due to lack of cultivation.

Now, with the arrival of immigrants, this land seemed to be about to regain vitality.

Immigrants cultivated farmland and built villages in the fertile river valleys.

Vast grasslands and mountains provided natural pastures for animal husbandry. Immigrants raised cattle, sheep, and even horses and other livestock in the surrounding hilly areas.

The only thing that worried Martin was the scarcity of immigrants; it seemed that after the first wave of immigration, the trend of immigration was immediately curbed.

He didn't know what was going on, but he believed the Emperor would solve these troubles.

However, what he didn't expect was that a second wave of immigration arrived unexpectedly, and this time all the immigrants were strong Hungarian men, which surprised and delighted him.

The influx of Hungarian would certainly lead to significant changes in the demographic structure and social composition here.

There were already frequent minor frictions between the German and Bulgarian, and now with a bunch of Hungarian inserted, the difficulty of management would undoubtedly increase greatly.

However, this was not a problem for the Teutonic Order; they, the Teutonic Knights... no, they should be called the Order of Saint George now, were best at resolving conflicts between different ethnic groups through religious faith.

What? You said what if it couldn't be resolved?

It's simple: just eliminate the people causing the conflict.

With the continuous expansion of the Teutonic Order's powerful military force, these Hungarian quickly integrated into immigrant life and began land reclamation.

To reduce conflicts, Martin still adopted the old method of segregation, dividing German areas, Hungarian areas, and Bulgarian areas, implementing different management methods in each community.

Of course, the mission of spreading the true faith in Bulgaria was not forgotten; many Bulgarian had been "deeply moved" and decided to repent and convert to the Roman Catholic faith.

Facts proved that what missionaries could not do, religious Teutonic Order could always do easily. Archbishop Alvinczi, sent by Pope Pius II to the Teutonic Order, did not want to express any opinion on this.

This was far from the end; in the future, more and more immigrants would pour into Bulgaria, settling in various parts of Bulgaria, and this land would therefore undergo tremendous changes.