Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 239 The Changing of the Sun
After Winters entered the city, Andrei immediately took him to see the warehouse.

"Their physique is absolutely filthy!" Andrei exclaimed with delight, riding straight to the military camp with Winters. "Now we have everything we need!"

There were still many dried bloodstains on the military camp's drill ground, but the bodies had already been removed.

The granary was located in a corner of the military camp, with a courtyard enclosed by a wall.

Andrei kicked open the granary door, and rows of widely spaced wooden huts and grain enclosures appeared before Winters' eyes.

Winters hadn't seen so much grain in a long time. Although he was somewhat prepared, he was still quite shocked.

Andrei, beaming, introduced, "I checked; the grains and wheat are evenly split, all from this year. Not bad, right?"

“It’s good. I’m happy, but also a little unhappy.” Winters looked at the grain depot with a complicated expression. “With this grain, we won’t have to go hungry or full. But we also have to know that this was all taken from the farmers.”

"Why think so much? Once it's in our hands, it's ours!" Andrei laughed loudly, put his arm around Winters' shoulder, and said confidently, "And the vault! The armory! They're all ours! In the end, the city is still the best! The countryside can't compare!"

After inspecting the granary, Andrei was eager to take Winters to check the gold vault and armory.

Wealth will concentrate in cities; the spoils from capturing Zhevodan alone cannot compare to those from robbing a thousand grain carts.

“Where’s Bard?” Winters asked.

"Old Ba is in the archives, I don't know what he's up to. It's all just scrap paper, what's the big deal?" Andrei said dismissively, pulling Winters along, "Come on, let's go see the armory!"

Say Bard, and Bard will appear.

He walked into the granary carrying a scroll, and seeing both of them there, he smiled and asked, "How is it? Is the granary alright?"

"Great! Excellent!" Andrei laughed.

“I’ve brought you something even better.” Bard handed the scroll to Winters: “It’s better than ten or a hundred granaries. In my opinion, all the other spoils of war in Ghevordan combined are not as valuable as this.”

"What?" Winters took the scroll.

“All records of land transfers, tax payments, and population migrations over the past thirty years since the establishment of Tiefeng County.” A hint of a smile appeared in Bard’s eyes: “All of them.”

Winters unrolled the scroll; he was holding a list of all the files and documents of the Ghevordan garrison, a list that seemed to have no end.

“Land deeds require verification by three parties. The archives of each town are kept in the town hall, but many have been destroyed. The buyer has a land deed, but it is not useful, much less reliable! Only the archives of Zhevodan are the most reliable records.” Bard’s voice trembled slightly.

The land deeds for Wolf Town have been reduced to ashes along with the old town hall, and many land deeds for other towns have also been lost.

The deeds in the hands of land buyers are difficult to count and can be forged, but the deeds in Gévaudan are never wrong.

Even Andrei seemed thoughtful upon hearing Bader's words.

"With them, we'll know where there are owners and where there aren't; we'll be able to measure the acreage and allocate the farmland; we'll be able to reshape the world according to our own will!" Bard's eyes reddened as he asked Winters, "Don't you want to smash this messed-up world? This is your first cornerstone."

“No, you’re wrong.” Windasta grabbed Bard and Andre’s arms. “They’re ours.”

……

At noon, Captain Montagne entered the city.

In the afternoon, the [municipal councilor] of Ghevodan was "invited" to a meeting at the city hall by fierce-looking soldiers.

There are 21 municipal councilors in the district of Ghevodan, 12 of whom are elected from within the city and 9 from outside the city.

The complete area of ​​Ghevordan includes both the city proper and the surrounding villages.

Some farmers whose land is close to the city even go out to farm during the day and return to the city to sleep at night.

Although these farmers are not "citizens" in the general sense, they also have the rights of citizens of the city of Gevordan.

In addition, because Ghevodan now has city walls—albeit very low ones—it can now be called a “city” rather than just a “market.”

The municipal councilors arrived at the government hall with trepidation, fully prepared to be thoroughly humiliated by the bandits.

But what they met was a kind young officer: broad shoulders and large hands, a wide mouth and a high nose, and eyes that were always smiling; he looked very honest and kind.

The young officer named "Bud" almost immediately won the trust and favor of the city councilors.

Lieutenant Bard patiently explained the policies to the municipal council members.

One word—immovable.

No additional taxes or apportionments will be levied, and municipal councilors and citizens will not be required to swear allegiance.

The new garrison will continue to do what the old garrison in Revodan did.

The new garrison will collect the same amount of tax as the old one, but some unreasonable tax items will be removed as appropriate.

Without even changing the address or office location, the "Montagne Gang" is now officially known as [(New) Garrison].

If they can stay in Zhevodan for a long time, the "new" prefix before "[garrison]" will likely be dropped soon.

The municipal councilors breathed a sigh of relief.

They came from well-off families and lived a stable life; what they feared most was "chaos".

If things get chaotic, everything will be lost.

For a long time, Zhevodan was a semi-autonomous city, and the garrison only had three things to do: collect taxes, sell land, and kill any bandits who dared to misbehave.

Moreover, Gevadan is very small, with a population of just over five hundred households. The municipal council only meets once a week, and they mostly discuss trivial matters.

If what Lieutenant Bard said is true, then it's just that the garrison is still a garrison, but the people inside have been replaced.

Although Major Ronald and others were laid off involuntarily, it had no impact on the lives of others.

Seeing that Lieutenant Bud was easy to talk to, the blacksmith and city councilor [Shaoy], known for his boldness, asked, "Lieutenant, about Ronald... no, Ronald's gang! They..."

“No need for that!” Bud interrupted with a smile. “We’re family with Major Ronald. We just have a little disagreement. Just keep calling me Major Ronald. I’m not a lieutenant either. You can call me Lieutenant or Lieutenant Bud, it’s fine either way.”

"Okay, okay." Although the other person was smiling, Shao Yi's knees still trembled involuntarily.

He forced himself to continue, "Lieutenant Bard, Major Ronald previously conscripted the Ghevorden security force. Without the security force, all the bad guys have come out; theft and robbery go unchecked. Could you perhaps..."

"Please rest assured, we have already taken these considerations. The garrison will take care of security first. Former guard members will be screened first, and those without problems will be released. From now on, the security of Revodan will still be the responsibility of the city hall."

The ruling committee members breathed a sigh of relief; many of them had been worried about the blacksmith, Shao Yi.

The Zhevodan Guard only had twenty men, and their families were all in the city, so letting them go wouldn't be a big deal—this was the conclusion of the six-man group's discussion.

“Just say it,” Bud said with a smile to the blacksmith, Shao Yi. “Although Major Ronald forcibly conscripted the city guard, he also managed to maintain order, and he did it very well. Now that we’re here, things are going to go wrong.”

The hearts of everyone who had been relieved suddenly jumped into their throats again.

“No, no…” Shao Yi shook his head like a windmill.

Bud smiled and looked at the group of municipal councilors: "It's the truth, what's wrong with saying it? The new garrison has nothing else to say but to be open and honest with everyone."

With a smile, he uttered a startling statement: "I know you want to ask us for [the city treasury]."

The city councilors were speechless, their breaths catching in their throats.

……

The warehouse of the garrison and the warehouse of the city of Zhevodan are two different things, just as the garrison and the city hall are two separate entities.

But the hot-tempered Lieutenant Don Juan didn't care about any of that. When he saw a warehouse, he would look for the key first. If he didn't have the key, he would blow up the door and demolish the wall. He didn't spare a single warehouse.

According to the original plan, the entire Revodan warehouse should have been emptied.

However, Juan and Moritz decided to change their backup plan, so all the warehouses were sealed off and placed under strict guard.

……

Bard reassured everyone, "I know that you committee members want to ask for the city treasury, but you dare not speak up. You are afraid that we are ruthless killers, afraid that we will retaliate in secret if we lose face, and afraid that if we bring things up, there will be no room for negotiation. I can promise you that none of the above will happen. We are a garrison, not bandits."

The city councilors breathed a slight sigh of relief when they saw that Lieutenant Bud's eyes were calm and his tone was sincere, not feigning anything.

Since meeting Lieutenant Bard, their hearts had been like waves, rising and falling.

Shao Yi mustered her courage and softened her tone: "We do want to ask about the city treasury, but we absolutely have no intention of begging..."

“Let’s be open and honest. There’s nothing we can’t talk about. We can only talk if we’re open.” Bard’s voice was deep and resonant, which was pleasant to listen to, but his words carried a different meaning: “I can tell you all right here and now, we will leave the armory. We will leave the food depot. We need weapons and food.”

The municipal councilors could not hide their disappointment, as Ghevordan had spent a great deal of public funds on the armory and granary.

After ruthlessly bursting the bubble of hope, everyone readily accepted reality.

After all, how could the other party possibly return weapons and food?
“The armory and granary are in special circumstances, and I hope everyone will understand. But the Revodan gold vault…” Bard changed the subject and said with a smile, “The garrison will be returned to everyone intact, with every single penny guaranteed.”

The municipal councilors breathed a long sigh of relief, their tense faces and furrowed brows relaxing.

The vault is still there, that's good, that's good, contentment brings happiness.

Bud added, "As for the rebuilt city guard, the garrison will provide them with weapons and training free of charge to ensure they can fulfill their duty of maintaining order."

Upon hearing Bader's words, all twenty-one municipal councilors showed joy on their faces.

After all, they only promised to return the people, not the weapons, so the city hall will probably have to spend more money to buy equipment for the guards.

But now that Lieutenant Bard has agreed to provide weapons to the guards without anyone having to pay extra, let's just accept that the armory has been given to them.

"Not only that," Bard announced with a smile before finishing his sentence, "the garrison will also pay a discounted price for the contents of the Zhevodan armory and granary. Our Zhevodan garrison would never rob the valuable property of you citizens for nothing!"

Blacksmith Shao Yi suddenly stood up and clapped his hands vigorously.

Other municipal committee members, some quickly and some slowly, also stood up and applauded along with Shaw.

Loud applause erupted in the city hall, as if hundreds of people were having a heated meeting.

……

The group of six—Winters, Bard, Andre, Mason, Juan, and Moritz—had discussed it carefully: the food and weapons could not be returned, but the money could.

Winters is not short of money. Not only does he have plenty of cash, but he also has two tons of gold buried in the wilderness.

Given the current situation in Tiefeng County, even with gold and silver, they cannot buy food and weapons.

So the group of six decided to simply "buy" the armory and granary from the city hall.

The price is open to negotiation, but as long as it's not too outrageous, the city hall will happily accept taking a loss.

No one knew better than Winters and his men that robbing a city could enrage it even more than taking its life.

By establishing mutual trust through equal transactions, Gervadan can stabilize.

What the six-person group wanted most was "stability"; nobody wanted to see Ghevordan catch fire.

They don't intend to take over Gévordan completely; as long as taxes are paid in full, it would be best for Gévordan to continue its autonomy.

Bader has obtained all the files and materials of the Zhevodan garrison and is organizing them.

The six-member group knew exactly how much tax Gévordan should pay and when it should be paid, and they weren't afraid of the municipal committee "bullying newcomers."

……

Bard raised his hand, signaling everyone to stop.

The city hall suddenly fell silent again.

"The garrison has more good news to share!" Bard continued, "The millstone tax within Iron Peak County is hereby abolished! No more payments are required! Everyone is free to use and manufacture millstones!"

The municipal committee members cheered and applauded once again.

But they were just offering their support; they weren't genuinely clapping like before.

Because they have status, identity, and property, the millstone tax is not a personal pain for them.

Millstone tax is a tax levied on millstones. People don't eat wheat, they eat flour, so wheat has to go through the millstone sooner or later.

Therefore, levying taxes on millstones became a natural choice for the rulers.

In the feudal era, serfs, tenant farmers, and even subjects had to go to mills designated by local lords to grind flour, and pay varying amounts of flour for this purpose.

Possessing a millstone is a crime: the first offender is punished with five lashes, the second offender with forced labor, and the third offender with his arm cut off.
Anyone who steals and builds a millstone should be hanged.

The reduced amount was recorded as "losses" and went into the miller's pocket, then flowed into the lord's pocket.

After the change of times and the advent of the republican era, the mill monopoly was regarded as a feudal remnant and abolished.

Therefore, the Republic of Plato changed its taxation policy to millstones—each millstone was taxed every six months.

Furthermore, each region strictly limits the number of artisans allowed to manufacture millstones, ensuring that each millstone is registered.

The millstone tax is the tax that people who are still struggling to survive hate the most and feel most helpless about.

Bard, who announced the abolition of the millstone tax, had a satisfied and genuine smile.

Later, he announced another important matter:
“This weekend!” Bader’s smile grew even brighter: “The garrison will hold a public trial of the criminals in the city square. I hope that all of you gentlemen will set an example and do your work so that every citizen of Gevordan will attend.”

The smiles on the faces of the municipal councilors froze.

……

After the meeting, the municipal committee members said goodbye to each other and went home.

But less than half an hour later, the twelve committee members from the city reunited at the tobacco merchant [Priskin's] house.

The group sat around old Priestin, sharing their stories of the day.

Old Priskin, sixty-four years old, was still in good health and was formerly the most respected municipal councilor in Zhevodan.

However, he had a serious illness at the beginning of the year and resigned from his position as a municipal councilor.

The people wanted to nominate his second son, Priskin Jr., to succeed him, but the old man firmly refused, so they had to give up in the end.

After resigning from his position as a municipal councilor, Priskin's health gradually improved.

Although he has stepped down, he remains the backbone of the municipal council, and others consult him when they have problems.

“That new junior officer named Bud,” the blacksmith Shao Yi said with difficulty, swallowing hard. “He manipulates us like we’re being pulled on a string. One moment we’re happy, the next we’re scared. We’re completely led by him.”

Old Priskin listened carefully to the account, then frowned and asked, "That Lieutenant Bard, always refers to himself as '[garrison]'?"

"Yes." Everyone nodded, and someone chuckled, "It's ridiculous that the rebels entered the city claiming to be government troops."

Everyone burst into laughter upon hearing this, and the room was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

"Foolish!" Old Priskin slammed his fist on the table, angrily rebuking, "He doesn't want to be a government soldier, but instead he's turned his back on the law and become a bandit, robbing, killing, and ransacking homes. Is that not ridiculous? Are you happy about that?"

The person who made the sarcastic remark was startled and trembled.

Old Priskin's brow relaxed: "They didn't want to be government troops, and we had to coax them into it; now that they want to be government troops, we have to support them even more. Business goes on as usual, life goes on as usual, what's wrong with that? Our wealth and possessions are all in Zhevodan, do you really want them to go on a killing spree?"

"So... that public trial?" Shao Yi asked, licking her lips. "Are we going to attend? He didn't say who would be tried, just that it would be a public trial."

"Why not go? Not only should we go, but we should bring a whole host of people, and make it a grand affair!" Old Priskin said with exasperation, "Praise them! Understand? Elevate them, the higher the better. The higher they act, the safer Zhevodan will be, and the safer we will be."

The others nodded silently upon hearing this.

After a long silence, old Priskin asked thoughtfully, "Did you see the leader known as the [Blood Wolf] on your trip?"

“No.” Shao Yi shook his head: “I only saw him once when he entered the city from afar. He was riding a tall horse, wearing an officer’s uniform, and he was quite young, but he looked quite dignified.”

"Was he originally the resident official of Langtun Town?"

"It is said so."

“Wolf’s Blood.” Old Priskin chewed on the word, then asked the crowd, “Wolf and blood, both are ominous. Does anyone know where he got that nickname?”

"Langtun Town, of course," someone said matter-of-factly.

“No.” Old Priskin sneered, “I think it’s more than that. What was his name again?”

"His surname is Montagne, but I don't know his given name," was another answer.

Old Priskin frowned: "Montagne... that's not a Paratist surname."

"Maybe he's from another province?" Shao Yi asked tentatively.

“Go and find out, but be very careful,” old Priskin cautioned. “Don’t be hostile; we’re just curious about the origin of the nickname ‘Blood Wolf.’ Do you understand what I mean?”

The municipal committee members all nodded in agreement.

Old Priskin thought for a moment and then asked, "You didn't see him at the city hall, so where is he now?"

“I know,” Shao Yi answered quickly. “My brother-in-law told me that the captain named Blood Wolf only stayed in the city for a short while. He left the city before noon.”

"Out of the city?" Old Priskin frowned deeply. "From which side did they leave the city?"

"North Gate!"

……

Winters had no idea that someone was studying him.

Less than an hour after entering the city, he, along with Andrei and his senior classmate Mason, led a cavalry unit out of the city again.

The cavalry, carrying secret weapons, headed to Hammerburg to meet up with Juan and Moritz.

Juan and Moritz are besieging Hammerburg.

Hammer Fort and Hammer Fort Town are not the same thing; Hammer Fort specifically refers to the wooden fort in the town center.

The claim that "Hammerburg has surrendered" was actually made up by Winters to demoralize Ronald's troops, just like the "protectors of Sixteen Towns" claim.

He is currently only the protector of the seven towns, and [Duanlu Township] has not reached an agreement with him.

Because Forgetown is right next to Thervordan, Winters' reach doesn't extend that far.

Captain Epel overcame numerous obstacles and finally managed to capture Hammer Fortress ahead of everyone else—Don Juan had no idea that there was such an inconspicuous little fortress north of Ghevodan.

To conceal his tracks, he crossed the St. George River via the road through Wangqiao Town.

Hammer Fortress was small and made of wood, and had been in disrepair for many years.

But it is indeed a fortress, and a direct assault would be counterproductive.

So at this very moment, the man holding up a large wooden plank and approaching Hammerlock is none other than the "Blood Wolf" that old Priskin was talking about.

"Senior Epel!" Winters shouted, "Come out and surrender!"

There was no sound from the fortress.

“The bandit leader Ronald has surrendered! You’re the only one left!” Winters reached out from behind the door and waved two flags: “These are his banners, look!”

With a "ding," an arrow pierced the door panel.

Captain Epper poked his head out and roared in grief and indignation, "I'd rather die than surrender!"

“Don’t worry! Surrender and you’ll be spared!” Winters replied.

“[The most vile curse of the Paratists]!” Captain Epel fired another arrow.

"If you don't surrender, I'll bombard you!" Winters continued to reason with them: "Think it over! Don't let your men be buried with you!"

"Who are you trying to scare?" Captain Epel roared. "Zevodan doesn't even have cannons! Where did you get yours? Come on! Bomb me to death! I'm waiting for you!"

“Okay!” Winters threw down the door panel and turned to leave decisively.

His attitude made Epper somewhat uneasy.

Even more uneasy were Eppel's men, who nervously peered out through the cracks in the wooden wall.

“Senior,” Winters returned to Mason’s side, “Eppel wants you to blast him.”

"Why waste words with him?" Don Juan was always unusually irritable on the battlefield: "Bomb him! Two shots and I guarantee he'll surrender!"

"If you can persuade them, it's better not to use force," Moritz sighed.

Senior Mason was quite cautious: "My cannon can only fire shot; it's not very effective at damaging wooden walls."

“You…” Don Juan suddenly realized that Mason was his senior, and swallowed back the curse: “You don’t even need to load the shells! The moment the cannon fires, those idiots inside will be scared out of their wits. The key is that the sound has to be loud! The caliber has to be large! And it has to look scary!”

“That’s right.” Winters laughed. “I’m not saying this to Senior Epel, but to the soldiers in Hammerhold.”

“Then let’s give it a try.” Mason also laughed: “It would be unreasonable not to make a sound after all the effort of bringing it here.”

He called out to Andrei, "Come on! Bring the cannon over here!"

Upon hearing this, Andrei lifted the veil.

He and his cavalry spurred their horses, dragging four dark cannons as they slowly approached Hammerhead.

From a distance, the caliber of these four cannons is terrifying, and their size is also frightening.

However, a closer look reveals that they are made of wood.

This was the secret weapon that Winters, Mason, and Andrei brought from Ghevodan. They originally intended to use it on the defenders during the most intense siege of Ghevodan, but they didn't expect the defenders to be so easily defeated.

Because the cannon barrel was made of wood, it was very light and could keep up with the marching speed of cavalry.

It was loaded onto a horse-drawn carriage and transported here after a bumpy journey.

Mason was preoccupied with his idea of ​​a [horse-drawn cannon], and this was a small-scale experiment.

The four giant cannons were getting closer and closer to Hammerhead.

To better deceive the enemy, Winters also had the four wooden cannons painted black.

With the makeshift artillery carriage and the way it moved with "two draft horses pretending to desperately drag the cannon," it actually looked quite convincing.

Epel was stunned when he saw Winters' men push out four giant cannons.

But the more he looked at it, the stranger the enemy's cannon seemed.

"Damn it!" he cursed, "He tricked us! He's a fucking blockhead!"

The roar of artillery drowned out his curses.

The four wooden cannons roared in succession, but only one of them contained cannonballs—weights, scrap iron, and other broken ironware.

Although the wooden cannon barrel reinforced with iron hoops cracked from the shock, it still withstood the internal pressure.

The propellant gases propelled the contents of the cannon barrel outwards, flying towards the Hammer Fortress.

The cannonballs pounded against the outer wall of Hammer Fortress, making a clattering sound and sending wood chips flying everywhere.

A thunderous roar pierced through the smoke: "Surrender! Or die!"

The men inside Hammerhold pried open the wooden planks securing the gate and scrambled out, shouting, "We surrender! We surrender! Spare our lives!"

In despair, Epper drew his sword, intending to commit suicide.

But with the blade resting on his neck, he couldn't bring himself to strike. The more he hesitated, the less he could bring himself to do it.

He threw down his sword, sat in the corner, and cried in frustration.

[This chapter also includes a map]
[The millstone tax did exist historically. Forcing serfs and even subjects to grind grain at designated mills was something feudal nobles did.]
[Sorry I'm late. The plot after entering the city is quite dense. It took some time to organize the narrative order. The current narrative order should be the best.]
[This is also a long chapter, 6700 words. The word count is a bit unusual because the emotions are all connected, so I won't split it up. Thank you everyone.]
[Thank you to all the readers for your collections, reading, subscriptions, recommendations, monthly tickets, donations, and comments. Thank you everyone!]
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(End of this chapter)