Iron Power And Sorcerer

Iron Power And Sorcerer Chapter 400

2022-02-01

Chapter 400 Echoes of the Mountains (Part 1)

"...Steel is forged by fire and heavy hammer, The same is true for this city! From a few thatched huts made of adobe and hay to the steel fort that stands by the Rose Lake today, we have experienced countless disasters, fires! Wars! Famine!"

"But— -My beloved countrymen, remember what I say - no matter how calamity, they have never succeeded in defeating us, not once! In the embers, we are reborn! And stronger!"

"This city, and the people who grow up in it, have a spirit, a bravery! Tenacity! The unyielding spirit! It flows in the blood vessels of you, me, and every Solingen. And in the bones. It's the spirit that sustains us rebuilding our streets, houses and warehouses again and again as they burn to ashes..."

A graceful figure in purple The man, standing at the top of the steps of the Municipal Palace, where the smoke and blood had not been washed away, spoke generously to the thousands of citizens who had gathered in the Municipal Square.

His left hand was standing by his waist, and his right hand was waving passionately with the cadence of his tone.

The dark crowd in the square was like an orchestra, directed by his right hand, giving out rounds of louder approval and cheers.

Standing by the window, looking at the silhouette on the steps from a distance, John Servette sighed: "I'm still not as good as him."

"As a negotiator, you Trickier than him - I'm not trying to compliment." Winters leaned against the window frame and waited until the interval between two rounds of cheers before speaking: "But I also have to honestly say that Mayor Wupper's ability cannot be learned by others."

Just listening to the impassioned, majestic words echoing in the square, it's hard to imagine that they came from a timid mayor who was forcibly dragged from his home by the gendarmerie. . .

When the Municipal Palace was attacked by an explosion, the quick-responding mayor abandoned the council and his colleagues immediately, and escaped from the Municipal Palace through the secret passage with his guards, and returned to the mansion. Take a step out of the gate.

But Paul Wupper has this ability: as long as you put him in a gorgeous gown, put on an expensive wig, and put a thick layer of powder on him, and then push him to the public. , you don't have to worry about the rest.

“I thought Mayor Wupper was just good at acting,” Winters said, resting his chin, “but I now find out that for Mayor Wupper, acting is an instinct he can’t control. He is not good at acting, he is a slave who desires to perform."

"Steel Castle now needs a leader who can boost the morale of the people." Servetus instead excused Paul Wupper: "Besides, from Since Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, no one was absolutely free. Mr. Granaghy, what kind of slave are you?"

"Me?"

This question Somewhat unexpected to Winters, he thought for a while, and answered seriously: "I may also be a slave who desires to perform?"

Servette's eyes were sharp: "Then what role are you playing? "

"At least in Steelcastle." Winters slowly said: "I'm playing a positive role."

Servetus' indifferent expression is still the face that lacks mood swings , he drew the curtains: "Let's go out for a walk."

Winters of course agreed.

Servette led the way, and the two left the Plaza Mayor, neither on horses nor in cars, without guards and without wearing any badges of honor. Just follow the street paved with slag, all the way to the south bank of the Rose River.

Standing on the south bank, looking around, among the charred ruins, some people who didn't go to the municipal square to listen to the speech were cleaning up the rubble.

After the warehouses and shops of the various Trading Company workshops were claimed, the blockade of the garrison on the South Bank was lifted - there was nothing left anyway.

Restrictions on the North Shore were eased, markets reopened, churches opened to victims, and some homeless victims were evacuated to villages and towns outside the city.

Perhaps the heat from the embers hasn't dissipated, but Steelcastle is on its way to rebuilding.

People wiped away tears, pushed away muck and rubble, and collected the remaining stone and wood. Burnt trees were also continuously transported from the mountains to the city for reconstruction.

"No matter how many times." Servetus whispered, looking at the determined, hard-working people, "I'll be amazed at the human will."

Winters silently Standing, not speaking.

After a while, Winters asked, "You have submitted a new plan for the South Bank in the City Council?"

"Yes." He said calmly: "The original block on the South Bank is centered on the Elin Church, which is randomly layered and wrapped. The layout of the streets and blocks is illogical. Since there is an opportunity to completely rebuild, we can't take the detour. "

Winters answered politely: "Very far-sighted idea."

Servette watched for a while and pulled a carbonized rat corpse from the ashes: "Some people say that on the night of the fire, the rats on the south bank jumped into the Rose River in droves, and they all froze to death under the ice. Those who didn't have time to escape were all burned to death, even the rats in the basement couldn't escape. You witnessed Is it there?"

"I didn't pay attention."

"Hopefully." Servetus buried the rat body back in the ashes, and said in a low voice, "So It may be able to completely cut off the plague of Steel Castle."

After walking another section of the road, the two reached the ruins of Elin cathedral.

The Elin cathedral was almost razed to the ground in the fire, leaving only a bell tower that did not want to collapse standing alone at the southern end of the site.

On the night of the fire, the lead panels covering the roof of the church were melted and flowed down the street. The orthodoxy has not had time to recycle the lead, so at first glance the stone pavement around the church appears to be plated with a dull silver.

Wandering through the ruins of the church, Servetus said regretfully: "What a great cathedral, but unfortunately it is impossible to withstand a single blow in the face of the Fire Dragon."

" I can't agree." Winters rubbed the tip of his nose: "The Fire Dragon tornado is just a tornado, and the Elin cathedral is a stone building, how can a tornado have the ability to overturn the Elin cathedral? It's obviously inside and outside the church. The repair brackets were burned, and the roof lost its support, so it collapsed."

Servette asked, "You were there?"

"Everyone who was there saw it." Winters answered.

Servetus didn't get into it either. He looked around at the surviving wall foundation of the church and suddenly asked Winters: "Do you know how Steel Castle started?"

"Because of iron ore? "

"Did you see the mines in Steelcastle?"

Winters reflected for a moment: "No."

"The mines are all on the other side of the mountain." .” Servette raised his hand and pointed to the Northern Part of City: “There is a valley across from Steel Castle, and there is a small town inhabited by miners called Redstone Town. After the ore is mined, it is first screened in Redstone Town. , fired, and then transported to Steelcastle for smelting with carriage."

Winters asked politely, "You seem to know a lot about mining?"

"My father, My grandfather was a miner." Servetus replied lightly: "My father lost half the sole of his foot in battle for Emperor Richard and was forced to leave the army. The pension that Emperor Richard gave him was not enough to pay his debts. , he and my grandfather had to sell the small piece of land we had and move from Newshall to Solingen to support our family by mining underground."

Winters gently nodded, listening silently. write.

"My story doesn't really matter." Servetus stopped and stared at the Rose River in front of him:

"What I want to ask you is, why is it the Steel Castle? ?

In terms of natural endowments, although Steel Castle has the hydraulic power of the Rose River, Redstone Town is closer to the mine. Monta also has iron ore in more than Steel Castle. Why is Steel Castle rising into Steel Castle? Fort?

The town of Redstone, which once had iron ore, is now only a vassal of Steelcastle. There is no iron smelting furnace in Redstone, and even the property rights of those mines are in the hands of the Blacksmiths' Guild of Steelcastle. Steelcastle blacksmiths can enjoy the wealth of iron smelting, while Redstone miners can only toil in muddy water. Why?"

Winters remembered the word "Great Saint Se walked into the workshop and personally promised the blacksmiths prosperity and prosperity".

The Steelcastle never doubted the veracity of this story. They not only told the children, but also regarded the Great Saint Joseph as the patron saint of the steel castle, and decorated the scene of "Great Saint Joseph entering the workshop" on every important occasion in the city.

"Probably a gift from God." Winters said an answer that was always right.

"Wrong!" Servetus resolutely and decisively said: "Only those who do not know why they are successful will use fate and divine grace to paralyze their rationality. I do not deny the impermanence of fate, but put everything Thanks to the gods, it is undoubtedly an insult to people."

Winters couldn't help but think highly of Mr. Senator, he slightly disapproved, and asked Mr. Senator to continue.

"The answer is simple." Servetus stomped on the ground: "It's under your feet."

Winters raised his eyebrows: "The way?"

"Yes, the road. Steel Castle defeated Redstone Town by building a road."

"Please elaborate."

Servette leaned on a cane and spoke calmly: "In the land of mountains, building roads is as sacred as building churches. Do you know why?"

Winters replied without hesitation: "The cost is too high."

"Yes, because road construction is too expensive, it is often only possible to start construction by raising funds from various parties. Since the money is spent, the funders naturally want to ask for a return. Therefore, Monta is full of checkpoints that collect tolls, and even many town councils are It is maintained by toll fees.”

Although Senator Servette’s tone was very disgusting with the setting of card tolls, Winters did not think there was anything wrong with it.

Because not only Monta, but other republics are also full of Luca, Veneta even joked that the army headquarters of gold and jade in glorious splendor was built with tolls.

"Whoever builds the road will receive the money." Winters said, "It makes sense."

"That's right, it makes sense." Servette looked at the mountains with some nostalgia Said, "But the brilliant thing about the Steelcastle Blacksmiths' Guild is that they built the road and decided not to charge any tolls."

"Losing business."

"Indeed Loss-making business, but after using everyone's money to do the most loss-making part of the business, the rest is profit. In this way, even if you go far, the tolls you save are enough to cover the steel fortress and red The cost gap of iron materials in Shizhen.

Although road construction is a loss-making business, Steel Castle prospered by crowding out and annexing the iron smelting industry in Hongshi Town by relying on the loss-making business. Continuing to build and buy roads, to this day, convoys entering and leaving Solingen do not need to pay tolls.”

“Since Redstone holds iron ore, they should have no shortage of steel to deal with. How could it be so easy to lose by the means of the Castle?"

Probably rarely said so much in one breath, Servette's voice became a little hoarse: "Because their interests are not unified, They don't have one like Steelcastle who can take short-term losses and put their hopes in the long-term blacksmiths' guild. So they're defending them separately."

Winters chewed on Servetus' words: "With Everyone's money, the most profitable place to do business?"

"It's the same with building roads, and so with building the Wupper Canal. Since it's everyone's money, spend it on something that benefits everyone. Is something wrong?"

"Yes, nothing wrong." Winters folded his arms and suddenly smiled a little: "But why are you telling me this?"

The remnant foundation wall whimpered in the wind, but the church inexplicably became more silent.

"You won, Granasi Baron." Servetus turned his back, looked at the altar after it was burned by fire, and said lonely:
"Steel Castle is no longer what it used to be. Steelcastle. No one supports my relief package. The people who own this city don't want to spend their money on things that benefit everyone. I can only rely on your gold and silver to drive the rebuilding program, even though I know you There is a problem with your identity, so I can only turn a blind eye and acquiesce to them selling weapons to you."

"So, this time you won, and you defeated us one by one." Winters extend the hand: "Enjoy your victory, Lord Baron."

Winters took Senator Servette's hand steadily and shook it.

Servette tried to take his right hand away, but no matter how hard he tried, his right hand was firmly held by young Baron.

“Your Excellency Congressman, have you considered another way of working together.” Winters slowed down: “A way that makes us and you both winners.”

"In what way?" Servetus stopped trying to take his hand away, but narrowed his eyes, watching Winters cautiously.

"Why limit our relationship to buying and selling?" Winters paused for a moment, his eyes glowing with rays of light: "Have you considered...investing in us."

[Happy New Year! Everyone! ]
[I hope everyone will be healthy, safe and prosperous tomorrow]
[I originally wanted to end the story line of Monta today, but I feel that the ending is a special match for "saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new". As a result...结果……（捂脸）]
[谢谢书友们的收藏、阅读、订阅、推荐票、月票、打赏和评论，谢谢大家]