Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 334 Head Coupon

Tiefeng County, Rewodan.

Should they sell the head coupons? This question plagued almost every militia member in Tiefeng County.

The more meritorious the militia member, the more conflicted they were, and Ivan was among them.

"Let's sell them," Aksinia pleaded with her husband, holding their youngest son. "At least sell one?"

Ivan didn't speak, but stared intently at the five head tickets lined up on the table.

Setting aside any associated value, the head certificate was essentially just an ordinary parchment printed with decrees and numbers; its only distinguishing feature was probably the lacquer seal and signature of the Montagne tribune.

Ivan found it increasingly unbelievable: how could such an ordinary piece of paper represent such a large sum of money?

"But who should we sell it to?" Ivan asked hesitantly. "And how many gold coins should we sell it for?"

Aksinia sat opposite her husband, holding her sleeping child, her voice trembling: "I just feel very scared."

What was Aksinia afraid of? Was it someone with malicious intentions? Or was it simply a fear of wealth? She couldn't say.

“I want to wait until things settle down, then I’ll exchange these few head certificates for real land.” Ivan bit his nails and poured out his heart to his wife: “We can go to the countryside and become rich farmers, and we won’t have to stay in the city living a life of uncertainty anymore—I don’t want to wield a sword anymore.”

"But when will things finally settle down?"

"I do not know either."

"I am afraid."

“Well… I’ll go out and ask tomorrow.” Ivan carefully put away the five head tickets and hid them behind the shrine. “Ask who’s willing to buy them?”

……

Similar conversations to those between the Ivans were common in Ghevordine and throughout Iron Peak County. In some cases, these conversations even escalated into arguments and violence.

While Mr. and Mrs. Ivan slept soundly, filled with unease and anxiety, Winters was showing Mr. Leo around the printing workshop, with little Priskin also present.

The county government printing workshop used the classic Gutenberg printing press, and to meet the special needs of printing announcements, a set of extra-large movable type was specially cast.

Winters picked up a newly printed notice, checked it to make sure it was correct, and handed it to Mr. Leo with a smile: "This notice will be posted tomorrow. You're leaving Iron Peak County, so please take a look."

“Thank God.” Leo took the announcement. “It’s finished.”

“It’s all thanks to you,” Winters said to Mr. Leo.

"It was just some minor repairs." Leo showed no pride, and bowed his head slightly. "There's no credit to speak of."

Little Priskin, unable to suppress his curiosity, secretly glanced at the newly printed announcement.

The entire announcement was about only one thing—headcount coupons.

……

When Winters first implemented the first merit system, he didn't think too much about it and only regarded it as a temporary incentive.

After all, the Terdun barbarians who invaded Tiefeng County only had a little over ten thousand heads, so exchanging them all for land wouldn't be a big deal.

However, after the introduction of the two policies of "free trading" and "exchanging head certificates for vouchers", the nature of the head certificates changed.

It turned into a reservoir and a powder keg, which gave Winters a headache.

Besides the speculators in Iron Peak County, there was another person who was very interested in the head tickets—Fernando Leo.

Leo observed Winters' decision-making with great interest, and after learning enough, he approached Winters for an in-depth conversation.

Leo, unusually direct, asked without beating around the bush, "I'd like to know, why did you replace the physical head with a paper certificate? Paper certificates are much easier to forge than human heads."

“No particular reason.” Winters laughed. “The militia were selling heads far too cheaply, and I couldn’t stand it, so I wanted to raise the price of heads.”

"So that's how it is." Leo showed no emotion.

“That’s how it was back then.” Winters decided to tell Leo the truth: “Now I have some new ideas. I think… head tickets might be a tool for raising funds.”

How to raise funds?

“From what I’ve seen, the vast majority of people who buy head coupons don’t actually intend to exchange them for land,” Winters said, somewhat embarrassed, revealing his naive thoughts. “They see them as a commodity that can appreciate in value.”

Business was a completely foreign concept to Winters, and he longed for guidance from seasoned businessmen: “If possible, I would like to issue bonds using all the unsold land in Iron Peak County as collateral—just like Marshal Ned did before.”

Leo listened attentively and then asked, "Why do you want to issue bonds?"

“Because we have no money.” Winters shrugged. “Iron Peak County needs money everywhere, but there’s nothing left in the treasury.”

Leo was utterly blunt: "If you want to link the value of human coupons to land prices, then I can tell you right now—you're playing with fire."

"why?"

“Land isn’t gold; its value fluctuates. The land prices in Iron Peak County are currently stable because the New Reclamation Army has rigidly set prices and strictly controls supply, artificially inflating prices.” Leo pointed to the ground and asked, “What do you think ‘head coupons’ are?”

Following Leo's train of thought, Winters replied, "Land?"

“That’s right.” Leo dissected the deeper logic of the head coupons step by step: “The head coupons are not just a piece of paper, they are a hundred acres of land. Each transaction is equivalent to the change of ownership of a hundred acres of land.”

Leo's chubby face flushed slightly: "By linking headcount vouchers to land, you have indirectly reduced the difficulty of buying and selling land, leading to increased land liquidity."

Previously, all land transactions had to go through the New Reclamation Legion. Now? Land transactions have become 'cash on delivery, vouchers on exchange,' and the New Reclamation Legion no longer sets the prices.

Moreover, with thousands more headcount vouchers suddenly appearing on the market, it's equivalent to you releasing hundreds of thousands of acres of land into the market all at once. I'm not exaggerating; by the time the people of Tiefeng County realize this, land prices in Tiefeng County will plummet, and all the landowners in Tiefeng County will become your enemies.

When Winters first listened, he frowned deeply because the issues Leo raised were ones he had never considered.

But when Winters heard Leo's serious warning, "You're going to crash land prices in Iron Peak County," his brow immediately relaxed.

“Wait a minute,” Winters asked with a smile, “You mean that if the headcount system continues, land prices will fall? And land sales will become easier?”

“Of course!” Leo was puzzled, but he patiently explained, “It’s like when a fabric merchant suddenly produces hundreds of thousands of bolts of wool, the price of wool on the market will naturally drop.”

Winters nodded, his expression becoming more relaxed: "Then I can feel a little more at ease."

Leo simply couldn't reason with this self-taught, boar-like economist: "Your Excellency Montagne—all the landowners in Iron Peak County would consider you an enemy."

“I know,” Winters said, weighing the pros and cons. “But it’s still less likely to cause resistance than directly allocating land. The landowners will be dissatisfied, but more people will become my allies, so I’m not too afraid.”

Leo remained silent, then asked, "Have you ever considered what would happen if the landowners bought up large quantities of poll coupons, and you wanted to give land to the poor, but the land ultimately ended up in the hands of the landowners?"

Winters was stumped by the question. After a long silence and deep thought, he grabbed Mr. Leo's hand and said, "Then you'll have to help me think of a way to prevent this from happening."

...The next day, Ivan got up very early, intending to ask a familiar sheriff who was buying head coupons.

Leaving his home, he wrapped his clothes tighter around himself and headed towards the other end of the city.

As he passed through the square, he saw a large crowd gathered in front of the bulletin board. It was just dawn, and normally there wouldn't be so many people out and about.

Driven by curiosity, Ivan walked toward the square.

Most of the people crowding around the notice board were illiterate, but that didn't matter, as city government clerks were shouting at the top of their lungs.

Ivan stood on the periphery of the crowd and listened for a long time, finally understanding two things:
First, the county government will begin surveying the land, and after Corpus Christi next year, it will be available to anyone who wants to redeem the head coupons.

Secondly, the county government will issue smaller denomination headcount vouchers to gradually replace the current headcount vouchers.

Hearing this, Ivan stamped his foot and prepared to go home. He didn't plan to sell his head coupons for the time being, because each head coupon was now worth 100 acres, and Ivan would feel the pinch if he sold any of them.

He wasn't in a hurry to use the money, so he planned to exchange it for smaller denomination coupons and then sell them as needed.

……

Tiefeng County, Manyun Valley.

Mayor Manyun Valley originally thought that Tamas's cavalry was the entirety of the "bridge builders".

He didn't realize he was so wrong until he discovered that Tamas had set up a huge camp that could hold thousands of people.

As Palatine gradually entered the depths of winter, the roads were almost deserted. However, the main road between Revodan and Manyun Valley presented an unnatural bustle.

Since the cavalry arrived at Manyun Valley, armed escort convoys have been arriving from Revodan for several days in a row.

From morning till night, the townspeople could hear the screeching sound of heavily loaded horse-drawn carriages moving about.

Tamas kept his promise and immediately led his men to cut down trees and build a pontoon bridge after the camp was completed.

Fear gripped the mind of Mayor Manyun Valley. He secretly wondered, "With so much supplies being transported here, does this mean we're about to go to war again?"

The mayor wasn't the only clever one in Manyun Valley; news of the war spread like wildfire. Panic gripped the town, and many wealthy families even fled overnight to seek refuge with relatives.

"What's going on here?" Tamas said, both amused and exasperated. "Should we gather everyone together and explain this?"

“Explain what?” Morrow slammed down the graphite strip, saying impatiently, “The more you explain, the less they’ll believe you. They’re all just bored at home in the winter, and they’ll gossip endlessly about anything that’s worth talking about… War? What do they know about war…”

As he spoke, Moro realized he had been talking too much, so he suddenly stopped and continued drawing.

“We can’t blame them. First they requisitioned grain, then they conscripted men, then they fought with Baishan County, then with the Hed people, it’s never stopped.” Tamas sighed, “If I were a commoner in Manyun Valley, I would be scared too.”

Moro continued drawing, ignoring Tamas. After a while, he said coldly, "You're no longer a commoner... When will the people from White Mountain County arrive?"

"tomorrow."

"Tell your men to stop slacking off and get the pontoon bridge done quickly."

The following day, the arrival of the Baishan County army on the other side of the river caused panic in Manyun Valley.

Tamas had to step in to explain the situation and appease the crowd, but to little avail.

The actions of the Baishan County army were remarkably similar to those of the Tiefeng County army: they first built a camp on the riverbank, and then began to construct a bridge.

The pontoon bridge, which runs east-west, was completed earlier than planned.

……

The person in charge of White Mountain County was an engineer lieutenant named Woods, who was not tall and spoke in a friendly manner, without the subtle arrogance that Tamas often sensed in the "officer cadets".

"Tamas." Woods really didn't know how to address the other person, but after thinking it over, he chose a way that couldn't be wrong: "Sir."

Tamas nodded, using body language to indicate that he was listening.

"Regarding the one thousand horses that you agreed to return..."

"Rest assured, not a single one will be missing."

“I’m sure there’s no problem with the number.” Woods looked at the herd of horses, his brows furrowed deeply. “But you’ve taken Palatine horses, and these horses—if I’m not mistaken—are Hed horses, aren’t they?”

The horses grazing in front of the two men were generally one to two fists shorter than Woods's mount.

Moreover, the horse wasn't in good condition; its belly was flat and its ribs were sticking out.

Tamas was somewhat ashamed. He scratched his head and said, "You don't know this, but the warhorses we got from your county have either died from overwork or from disease. There are really only a few left. All we have now are these captured Herder horses. You see, isn't the one I'm riding a Herder horse?"

As he spoke, Tamas patted his mount's neck.

"Then why are those warhorses being used as cargo..." Woods pointed to another group of horses in the distance.

The herd of horses in the distance was clearly larger than the Herd Horse in front of them.

Tamas spoke up quickly: "We will definitely prioritize delivering our best warhorses to you as goods, otherwise wouldn't that be a loss for you? Returning them is one thing, trading is another. The two things cannot be confused, and the two groups of horses cannot be mixed up."

Woods bent his riding crop and asked, "Does Colonel Gasa know about this?"

“Of course I know,” Tamas assured, patting his chest. “His Excellency Montagne has already obtained Colonel Gaisa’s understanding.”

Woods' expression grew increasingly strange: "When Captain Montagne obtained the Colonel's forgiveness... was the Colonel conscious?"

"This... I don't know."

After repeatedly confirming that Colonel Gasa was aware of the matter, Woods sighed helplessly: "Then so be it. From another perspective, no matter how much you give back, we're still making a profit."

“You’ve already confirmed the warhorses.” Tamas’s smile faded. “Where are our men?”

"It's just across the river, I'll send it over to you in a bit. She's been fed and cared for well, she hasn't lost a single tooth." Woods took out his notebook from his pocket: "Now, we can talk about other business."

……

The civilians of Manyun Valley were shocked to discover that the "rebels" and the Baishan County army not only did not engage in a major battle, but seemed to have some kind of tacit understanding, each guarding their own bridgehead and neither crossing the Anya River.

Townspeople with relatives on the other side tried to apply to the military for a permit to cross the pontoon bridge, but were told that "anyone can use the pontoon bridge as long as they do not carry weapons."

The panic gradually subsided, and the transportation between the two counties, which had been cut off since Winters Montagne's capture of Gevordan, was finally restored.

The camps at both ends of the pontoon bridge served as the handover points, with grain and salt going west and horses, tobacco, and sesame oil going east.

[The author knows absolutely nothing about economics (facepalm), and the more I write, the more I realize my lack of knowledge and writing skills.]
[Assuming such a thing as a "personal voucher" truly existed, someone would inevitably lose everything—there's no such thing as a world where no one gets hurt.]
[Or rather, only a world where little Priskin is injured has achieved this (Winters's kind smile)]
[Therefore, we still need to think carefully about the part about the per-person coupons, or find a way to "digest" it.]
[The transitional plot has been a bit long lately, so I'll try to keep it brief and get straight to the next volume.]
[Thank you so much for your company, fellow readers. I am deeply grateful.]
[I feel guilty about the poor quality of my recent stories. I wanted to focus on Winters, but other things always seemed to come up.]
[Practice has proven that my abilities are still insufficient to handle larger stories (facepalm)]
[But don't worry, I'll continue writing.]
[Could fellow book lovers recommend some books on writing theory? Many thanks!]
[Thank you to all the readers for your collections, reading, subscriptions, recommendations, monthly tickets, rewards, and comments. Thank you everyone!]
(End of this chapter)