Potiorek, as an elder, personally guided the East African Military Observation Team, but the changing fortunes of the battlefield soon brought him no joy.

Due to Russia’s threat, the Empire’s Chief of Staff Conrad redeployed the Second Army, which was Potiorek’s most elite unit, and its departure directly led to the entire Serbian front becoming disadvantaged, exposing the flaws in Potiorek’s so-called "command art."

Serbia withstood three offensives by Potiorek’s command and shifted from defense to offense, gaining the initiative in the war, causing the situation to rapidly deteriorate.

Even the East African Military Observation Team, a neutral organization, had to withdraw to the rear in accordance with Potiorek’s command.

...

Southwest Bosnia, Mostar.

With the outbreak of war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, and due to its proximity to the front lines, the entire Neretva region became tense.

As the capital of Southwest Bosnia, Mostar also entered a state of readiness. It is a crucial hub for transporting supplies to the Austro-Hungarian front lines.

The Bosnian region is mainly mountainous and far from the core areas of Austria-Hungary, making land transportation of most materials from the homeland difficult.

In Neretva, developed by East Africa, it has dual advantages of sea and rail transport. Weapons from Czechoslovakia, industrial products from Austria, and supplies from East Africa can arrive at Puloch port in Neretva, then be transported by railway to the east in Jablanica, and finally by waterway and road to the front lines.

This has led the Dalmatian Kingdom and Bosnia’s Neretva River region to become "strangely prosperous," with large quantities of supplies and soldiers landing at Puloch port, driving a prosperous war economy.

In response to these urgent changes, the Mostar local government must make corresponding decisions.

"Mostar has almost become a barracks now, with large numbers of soldiers pouring in, posing a disaster for local security and stability. Therefore, we must organize law enforcement teams and establish wartime regulations to restrain the behavior of soldiers throughout the Neretva River region, preventing them from disrupting local order and productive activities," Li Yue, a councilor of the Mostar local parliament, said at the Mostar council.

Compared to East Africa, the Chinese in the Neretva region more retain their naming habits because this is not East Africa, but Austria-Hungary, a multi-ethnic country with weak central authority, so Mostar holds significant power.

"I agree with Councilor Li Yue’s suggestion. This month there have been three disputes between the army and the populace, which were previously unseen. We do not fully trust the quality of the foreign army," Croatian-born councilor Kledovich concurred.

Although East Africa has permeated the Neretva region like a sieve, a significant number of Croatians reside here, so currently, Croatians hold considerable influence in Mostar’s government.

Chinese immigrants and Croatians surely have some conflicts, but when facing outsiders, their stance is unified, especially against the "strictly disciplined" Austro-Hungarian army. No one wants to entrust their fate to others.

This mistrust between ethnicities and regions is widespread within Austria-Hungary, particularly so in the weaker controlled southern regions.

Chair Heiper asked at this moment, "How should we negotiate with the military?"

The military and local government are two different systems. Of course, there is a local military presence in Mostar, but the Mostar local army has already gone to the front and been organized into a new German Corps by Potiorek, distinct from the armies composed of Ottomans and Croatians, Serbians.

Mostar and its surrounding areas are arguably the only places in Bosnia where German language proficiency is achieved, even local Croatians, under the influence of education, administration, and language environment, use German as their daily language, making them the most Germanized Slavs within Austria-Hungary.

Potiorek’s German Corps is composed of three regiments, one of which was formed temporarily following the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, numbering around ten thousand, about a brigade-size force.

As for the first two regiments, they were formed in accordance with Austria-Hungary’s conscription system before the war due to the large population of the Neretva River area, making them quite prominent in the local Bosnian army.

The central army of Austria-Hungary can be divided into the German Corps and the Hungarian Corps, so Bosnia having a pure German Corps is an unusual circumstance.

Now, Mostar, as the transport hub of Southwest Bosnia, has gathered troops from Venice and Austria within the Empire.

These troops are not subject to Mostar’s jurisdiction, leading to the scene at the Mostar council.

Li Yue responded to Chair Heiper’s question, "There are currently twenty thousand soldiers in Mostar. The sudden influx of so many troops puts great pressure on us. Mostar will clearly continue to accept more troop transfers, so we should designate a military zone to separate the army from civilians."

Mostar is a node for Austria-Hungary supporting the Serbian battlefield, so as long as there is war towards Serbia, there will evidently be more troops assembled here and then transported to the front lines.

Among the world’s major powers, Austria-Hungary’s organizational ability is relatively weak, so to complete scheduling tasks, unintegrated troops are merely a bunch of rabble.

"This way, military activity won’t impact the city much. For sure, as a supporter of the military, Mostar must cooperate with the military zone, like constructing temporary consumption places, supply points, to minimize soldiers entering the city."

"Meanwhile, staff sent by the city government will form a temporary institution to negotiate with the military and handle disputes. To constrain the army, I propose utilizing a portion of tax revenue to establish a local inspectorate focused on emergencies."

Kledovich also added, "I think the north of the train station is suitable as a barracks, because the Empire’s army relies on the railway system for mobilization, and Mostar train station is already at a certain distance from the city due to its recent construction, this is conducive to their deployment."

"Only ordinary troops will probably be reluctant to go there, considering it’s still a vast undeveloped forest, so the city government should arrange personnel to clear the area and build some temporary facilities, including road paving, temporary barracks, water and electricity systems, public toilets."

"When subsequent troops enter Mostar, we’ll place them there. This work should be completed within three months, so we must mobilize citizens to act swiftly."

Heiper: "Good, let’s urge the city government to complete these tasks. Does anyone have anything else to add?"

The efficiency of the Mostar council is quite high. Only a day after the meeting, the city government began action, aiming to achieve complete military-civilian separation across the area.

Regarding the discipline and quality of European armies, precaution is never excessive. After all, the Neretva region is one of the few affluent areas in Bosnia, ranking above mid-level within the entire Empire.

While Mostar takes action, other places in the Neretva region under the planning of East Africans also began war mobilizations.

After all, Mostar is the local capital, Austria-Hungary will certainly send people to watch, and there’s too much attention with too many people, making many things difficult to conduct.

Therefore, East African activities in the Neretva region can only be carried out elsewhere. Based on the East African Government or Ernst’s pessimistic expectations of Austria-Hungary, Neretva must always prepare for unfavorable frontline warfare.

After all, relations between Neretva and Serbia are not good; to Serbians, this area is entirely alien and one of Austria-Hungary’s war accomplices. If Austria-Hungary’s frontline warfare is unfavorable, this area could very well become a battlefield.