Chapter 239 Changing Days

After Winters entered the city, Andre immediately took him to see the warehouse.

"Gévaudin is so fat!" Andre beamed, and he and Winters rode straight to the military camp: "Now we have everything!"

There are still many dried blood stains on the military camp grounds, but the bodies have been cleaned up.

The grain depot is in the corner of the military camp, with a courtyard enclosed by the corner.

Andre kicked open the door of the grain depot, and wide-spaced wooden houses and grain fences appeared in front of Winters.

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

Andre introduced with a cheerful face: "I checked, the grains and wheat are divided in half, they are both from this year. Not bad, right?"

"It's good. I'm happy, but also a little unhappy." Winters looked at the grain store with complicated eyes: "With these grains, we don't have to be hungry or full. But we also have to know that these are all from It was snatched from the hands of farmers.”

"Why do you think so much? If it falls into our hands, it belongs to us!" Andre laughed loudly, put his arm around Winters' shoulders, and said confidently: "And the vault! The weapons arsenal! They all belong to us! After all, the city is better! The countryside can’t compare!”

After seeing the grain depot, Andre was excited to take Winters to check the vault and weapons depot.

Wealth will be concentrated in the cities, and the capture of Jevaudan alone cannot be compared to the robbery of a thousand grain trucks.

"Where's Bud?" Winters asked.

"My boss is in the archives. I don't know what he is doing. It's all waste paper. What's there to care about?" Andre disagreed. He pulled Winters: "Let's go! Let's go see the weapons warehouse!"

Say Bud, and Bud will come.

He walked into the grain depot with a scroll and saw both of them there. He smiled and asked, "How is it? How is the grain depot?"

"Okay! Great!" Andre laughed.

"I bring you something better." Bard handed the scroll to Winters: "It's better than ten or a hundred grain depots. If you ask me, add one piece to the other captures in Gevaudan. It’s not as valuable as something like this.”

"What?" Winters took the scroll.

"Since the establishment of Tiefeng County, all records of land transfer, tax payment and population migration in the past thirty years." A few smiles appeared in Bud's eyes: "Everything."

Winters unfolded the scroll. He was holding a list of all the files and files in Gévaudan's garrison. The list seemed to be endless.

"Land deeds require three-phase verification. The files of each town are stored in the town office. Many of them have been destroyed. The land purchaser has a copy of the land deed, but it is not useful and cannot be trusted! Only Gévaudin's files are the most reliable. record." Bud's voice was trembling.

The land deeds of Wolf Town have been reduced to ashes along with the old town hall, and many of the land deeds of 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 of Gévaudin will never be wrong.

Hearing Bud's words, even Andre was thoughtful.

"With them, we can know where there are owners and where there are no owners; we can count the acres and allocate farmland; we can re-plan the world according to our wishes!" Bud's eyes turned red and he asked Winters: "Don't you want to smash this fucking world? This is your first cornerstone."

"No, you are wrong." Wintel grabbed the arms of Bud and Andre: "They are ours."

…

At noon, Captain Montagne entered the city.

In the afternoon, Gévaudan's [municipal councilor] was "invited" to a meeting at the city hall by vicious soldiers.

There are twenty-one municipal committee members in the Gévaudan district, twelve elected from within the city and nine elected from outside the city.

The complete Gevaudan includes both the urban area and the villages surrounding it.

Some farmers whose land is relatively close to urban areas will 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 citizenship rights in Gevaudan.

In addition, because Gevaudan now has a city wall, although it is very low, she can also be called a "city" instead of just a "city".

The municipal committee members came to the government hall tremblingly, prepared to be brutally killed by the bandits.

But what they saw was a kind-hearted young officer: broad shoulders, big hands, wide mouth, high nose, eyes always smiling, looking very honest.

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

Lieutenant Bader patiently explained policies to the municipal commissioners.

One word - immobile.

No taxes or apportionments will be imposed, and city councilors and citizens will not be required to swear an oath of allegiance.

What the Gévaudan garrison did in the past, the new garrison will do.

The new garrison will collect as much tax as the old garrison collected, but some unreasonable tax items will be removed as appropriate.

Even the house number and office location have not been changed. The official name of the "Montagne Gang" is now [(New) Resident Office].

If they can stay in Jevaudan for a long time, I think [new] in front of [garrison] will soon be omitted.

The city commissioners breathed a sigh of relief.

Their families are well-off and their lives are stable. What they fear most is "chaos".

There's chaos, but there's nothing left.

For a long time, Jevaudan has been a semi-autonomous city, and the garrison has only been responsible for three things: collecting taxes, selling land, and killing blind bandits.

Moreover, Gevaudan is very small, with a population of more than 500 households. The city council met only once a week, and they discussed trivial matters.

According to what Lieutenant Bader said, it was like a garrison or a garrison, but with a different group of people inside.

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

Seeing that Lieutenant Bader was easy to talk, the blacksmith and municipal councilor [Shaoy], who was always known for his boldness, asked: "Sir Lieutenant, Mr. Ronald before... no, the Ronald gang! They..."

"It doesn't have to be like this!" Bud interrupted with a smile: "We are the same family as Major Ronald. We just have a little difference. Just keep calling me Major Ronald. I'm not a lieutenant, so you can call me lieutenant." , Lieutenant Bader, everything is fine.”

"Okay, okay." Although the other party was smiling, Shaoyi's knees still shook unconsciously.

He bit the bullet and continued: "Lieutenant Bader, Major Ronald previously forced the Jevaudan security team to join the army. Without the security team, all the bad guys came out, and no one took care of theft and robbery. Take a look. Can you..."

"Don't worry, we have already given some consideration. The garrison will take care of public security first. Members of the former guard will be screened first and released if there are no problems. From now on, the city hall will still be responsible for the security of Jevaudan."

The ruling committee members were shocked. Many of them had just been worried about blacksmith Shao Yi.

There are only twenty members of the Jevaudan Guards, and all the children are in the city, so there is nothing wrong with letting them go - this is the result of the discussion of the six-member group.

"Just say it straight." Bud smiled and said to blacksmith Shaoyi: "Although Major Ronald forced the city guard to join the army, he also arrested the security, and he did a good job. When we came, it turned out that No more."

Everyone's relieved hearts suddenly rose in their throats.

"No, no..." Shao Yi's head shook like a windmill.

Bud smiled and looked at the municipal committee members: "This is a fact, what can't be said? The new garrison has nothing to do. I just want to be honest with everyone."

With a smile on his face, he said something shocking: "I know you want to ask for [the city treasury] from us."

All the city councilors stopped breathing.

…

The garrison's warehouse and the warehouse in Gevaudan are two different things, just as the garrison and the city hall are two different teams.

But the irascible Lieutenant Don Juan didn't care about that. When he saw a warehouse, he first looked for the key. If he didn't have the key, he would blow up the door and tear down the wall. He didn't spare any warehouse.

According to the original plan, all the Gevaudan warehouses should be emptied.

But Juan and Moritz decided to change their backup plan, so all the warehouses were sealed and strictly guarded.

…

Bud kindly reassured everyone: "I know that the committee members want to ask for the city treasury, but they don't dare to ask. You are afraid that we will kill without batting an eye, afraid that we will lose face and retaliate secretly, afraid that the matter will be made clear and there is no room for negotiation. I I can promise you that none of the above will happen. We are a garrison, not bandits."

The municipal committee members relaxed a little when they saw Lieutenant Bader's calm eyes and sincere tone, which did not seem to be hypocritical.

Ever since they saw Lieutenant Bader, their hearts were like waves, rising and falling.

It was Shao Yi who had the courage to say soft words: "We do want to ask the city treasury about things, but we have no intention of asking..."

"Let's be frank and honest. There's nothing we can't talk about. It's easy to talk about it." Bud's voice was mellow and low, which made everyone feel comfortable, but his words sounded the opposite: "I can tell everyone clearly here that the weapons arsenal, We will stay. The food depots, we will stay too. We need weapons and food."

The municipal councilors could not conceal their disappointment because Gévaudin had spent so much public money on arsenals and grain depots.

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

After all, the other party is...how could he return the weapons and food?

"The situation of the arsenal and grain depot is special, I hope everyone will understand. But the Rewardan Treasury..." Bud changed the topic and said with a smile: "The garrison will be returned to everyone in full, and I guarantee that every piece of money will be worth a lot of money."

The municipal committee members took a long breath, and their tense cheeks and furrowed brows relaxed.

The treasury is still there, it’s good, it’s good, I’m contented.

Bader continued to add: "As for the rebuilt City Guards, the garrison will provide them with weapons and training for free to ensure that they can assume the responsibility of maintaining law and order."

After hearing what Bud said, the twenty-one municipal committee members all looked happy.

After all, I had only promised to return the people but not the weapons. I think the city hall would have to dig into their own pockets to purchase equipment for the guards.

But now that Lieutenant Bader has promised to provide weapons to the Guards, everyone does not need to pay extra, so just give it to the arsenal.

"Not only that." Before Bard finished speaking, he announced with a smile: "The garrison will also pay a discount for the storage of the Gévaudan arsenal and grain depot. We, the Gévaudan garrison, will never rob citizens for free. valuable property!"

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

Other municipal committee members quickly or slowly stood up and clapped along with Shao Yi.

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

…

The six-man group - Winters, Bud, Andre, Mason, Juan and Moritz - had carefully discussed: it was impossible to return the food and weapons, but the money could be returned.

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

Based on the current situation in Tiefeng County, even if you have gold and silver, you cannot buy food and weapons.

So the six-member group decided to simply "redemption" the arsenal and grain depot from the city hall.

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

No one knows better than Winters and others: robbing money can anger a city more than killing people.

By gaining mutual trust through equal dealings, Gévaudan can be stable.

What the six-member group wants most is "stability", and no one wants to see Gévaudan catch fire.

They do not intend to take over Gévaudan completely. As long as they pay taxes according to the amount, it would be best for Gévaudan to continue to be autonomous.

Bud has obtained all the archives of Gévaudin's garrison and is sorting them out.

The six-member group knew very well how much tax Gévaudin should pay and when it should be paid, and were not afraid of the municipal committee "bullying students".

…

Bud raised his hand to signal everyone to stop.

The city hall suddenly returned to silence.

"There is some good news from the garrison, let me tell you all here!" Bud continued to announce: "The millstone tax in Tiefeng County will be canceled from now on! No need to pay anymore! Everyone can use and make millstones freely!"

Once again, the city councilors cheered and clapped.

But they were just cheering, not sincerely clapping like before.

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

Millstone tax is a tax levied on millstones.

People don't eat wheat, they eat flour, so sooner or later the wheat has to go on the millstone.

Therefore, taxing millstones became a natural choice for rulers.

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

Possessing a millstone privately is a crime: the first offense is five lashes, the second offense is hard labor, and the third offense is to have the arm chopped off;

Those who secretly make millstones will be hanged directly.

The reduced weight goes into the miller's pocket as "loss" and then flows to the lord's pocket.

Another day, after entering the republican era, [the mill monopoly] was regarded as a feudal legacy and was banned.

So the Republic of Plato instead levied a tax on millstones - each millstone was paid semi-annually.

Moreover, each place strictly limits the number of craftsmen allowed to make millstones and ensures that each millstone is registered.

The millstone tax is the most hated and most helpless tax for people who are still struggling to survive.

Bud, who announced the lifting of the millstone tax, smiled with satisfaction and sincerity.

Later, he announced another big event:

"This weekend!" Bud's smile became brighter: "The garrison will [publicly try] criminals in the city square. I hope you gentlemen will set an example and do your work, and let every citizen of Gévaudan come to participate."

The smiles on the faces of the city councilors froze.

…

At the end of the meeting, the municipal committee members said goodbye to each other and went home.

But not even half an hour had passed before the twelve city committee members met again at the tobacconist [Priskin's] house.

Everyone sat around Old Priskin, and you and I told each other what happened today.

Old Priskin was sixty-four years old and still very strong-boned. He was formerly the most respected municipal councilor in Gevaudan.

However, he suffered a serious illness at the beginning of the year and resigned as a municipal committee member.

Everyone originally wanted to recommend his second son, Priskin Jr., to take over, but the old man firmly refused, so they had to give up.

After resigning as a city councilor, the elder Priskin's physical condition gradually improved.

Although he has resigned, he is still the backbone of the municipal committee and others come to him for discussion.

"The new little officer named Bud." Shao Yi, the blacksmith, swallowed hard and sighed: "He manipulates us like he is holding a string. We are happy and scared for a while, and we are completely led by him. .”

After listening to the story carefully, Old Priskin frowned and asked, "That Lieutenant Bader, always calls himself [Garrison Station]?"

"Yes." Everyone nodded, and someone said with a smile: "The rebels came into the city and called themselves officers and soldiers. It's really funny."

Everyone laughed when they heard this, and the room was filled with happy air.

"Confused!" Old Priskin slapped the table and yelled angrily: "He is not a soldier, he is a bandit, robbing, killing and ransacking homes. Isn't it funny? Are you happy?"

The man who made the sarcastic remarks was frightened.

Old Priskin's brows widened: "They don't want to be officers and soldiers, so we have to coax them to do so; now they want to be officers and soldiers, and we have to support them. Business is done and life is taken care of, what's wrong with us? With all your property in Gévaudan, do you still expect them to go on a killing spree?"

"Then... what kind of public trial is that?" Shao Yi licked his lips and asked, "Are we going to attend? He didn't say who was going to be tried, he just said he wanted a public trial."

"Why don't you go? Not only do you want to go! You also want to take people there, and make it lively and lively!" Old Priskin said, "Hold them! Understand? Put them up high, the higher the better." .The higher their stance, the safer Gevaudan will be and the safer we will be."

The others heard the words and nodded silently.

After being quiet for a while, Old Priskin asked thoughtfully: "Did you see the leader known as the [Blood Wolf] this time?"

"No." Shao Yi shook his head: "I only saw him once from a distance when he entered the city. He was riding a tall horse and wearing an officer's uniform. He was also very young, but he looked quite majestic."

"He turned out to be the resident official of Langtun Town?"

"It is said to be."

"Blood of wolves." Old Priskin chewed on the word and asked everyone: "Wolves and blood are both very dangerous. Who knows where his nickname came from?"

"It's Langtun Town." Someone said matter-of-factly.

"No." Old Priskin sneered: "I think it's more than that. What's his name?"

"My surname is Montagne, I don't know what it is called," answered the other.

Old Priskin frowned: "Montagne...this is not a Platuan surname."

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

"Go and inquire, but be careful." Old Priskin warned: "Don't show any ill will. We are just curious about the origin of the nickname Blood Wolf. Do you understand what I mean?"

All the city council members nodded.

Old Priskin thought for a while and asked again: "You didn't see him when you went to the city hall, so where is he now?"

"I know." Shao Yi rushed to answer: "I heard from my brother-in-law that the captain named Xuelang only stayed in the city for a short time. Before noon, he left the city again."

"Leaving the city?" Old Priskin frowned: "Which way did you leave the city?"

"North Gate!"

…

Little did Winters know he was being studied.

Less than an hour after entering the city, he, Andre and Senior Mason led a group of cavalry out of the city again.

The cavalry rushed to the town of Hammerburg with secret weapons to meet Juan and Moritz.

Juan and Moritz are laying siege to Hammerburg.

Hammerburg and Hammerburg town cannot be equated. Hammerburg specifically refers to the wooden castle in the center of the town.

"Fort Hammer has surrendered" was actually made up casually by Winters in order to undermine the morale of Ronald's troops, just like "The Protector of Sixteen Towns".

He is currently only the protector of the Seven Towns, and [Forge Township] has not reached an agreement with him.

Because the Forge Country is right next to Gevaudan, Winters' arms can't reach that far.

Captain Epel overcame difficulties and obstacles and finally took the lead in occupying Fort Hammer - Don Juan had no idea that there was such an inconspicuous small fortress north of Gevaudan.

In order to hide his whereabouts, he took the road from King's Bridge to cross the St. George River.

Although the Hammer Castle is small, it is also made of wood and is in disrepair.

But it is indeed a fortress, and the gain of a strong attack outweighs the losses.

So at this moment, the man approaching the Hammer Castle holding a large door panel is the "blood wolf" that old Priskin talked about.

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

There was no sound from the fort.

"The bandit leader Ronald has surrendered! You are the only one left!" Winters reached out from behind the door panel and waved two flags: "These are his military flags, look!"

With a "ding" sound, an arrow was inserted into the door panel.

Captain Epel stuck out his head and shouted angrily: "I would rather die than surrender!"

"Don't worry! Surrender and avoid death!" Winters responded.

"[The most vicious curse of the Platuan people]!" Captain Epel shot another arrow.

"If you don't surrender, I'm going to bombard you!" Winters continued to convince people with reason: "Think carefully! Don't let your people be buried with you!"

"Who are you scaring?" Captain Epel yelled: "Gevaudin doesn't even have a cannon! Where did you get the cannon? Come on! Kill me! I'm waiting for you!"

"Okay!" Winters threw away the door panel, turned around and left.

His attitude made Epel a little uneasy.

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

"Senior." Winters returned to Mason: "Epel wants you to blast him."

"What nonsense are you talking to him?" Don Juan was always extremely irritable on the battlefield: "Blast him! Two shots down, and I'll make sure he surrenders!"

"If you can persuade, don't use force." Moritz sighed.

Senior Mason was very cautious: "My cannon can only shoot shotguns, and its damage effect on wooden walls is not very good."

"You..." Don Juan suddenly realized that Mason was a senior, and swallowed back the curse words: "You don't need to load the cannonballs at all! As soon as the cannon fires, the trash inside will be so scared that they will wet their pants. The key is to make the sound louder. Loud! The caliber must be large! It must look scary!"

"That's it." Winters laughed: "My words are not addressed to Senior Epel, but to the soldiers in Hammer Castle."

"Then let's try it." Mason also smiled and said: "It takes a lot of effort to bring it here, but it can't be justified without making a few noises."

He called to Andre: "Come on! Bring the cannon over here!"

Hearing this, Andre lifted the veil.

He and the cavalry mobilized their horses and slowly approached the Hammer Castle, dragging four black cannons.

From a distance, the caliber of these four artillery pieces was extremely terrifying, and their size was also terrifying.

But looking up close reveals the truth, because they are made of wood.

This was the secret weapon that Winters, Mason and Andre brought from Gévaudan. They were originally intended to use it against the defenders when the siege of Gévaudan was at its most intense, but they did not expect the defenders to be so reluctant to fight.

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

It was loaded onto a carriage and transported over a bumpy journey.

Mason was thinking about his [horse-drawn artillery] idea, and this time he conducted a small experiment.

The four giant cannons are getting closer and closer to Hammer Castle.

In order to better deceive the enemy, Winters also had the four wooden cannons painted black.

Coupled with the temporarily assembled gun carriage and the moving method of "two draft horses pretending to drag the cannon desperately", it really looks decent.

Epel was stunned when he saw Winters' men launching four huge cannons.

But the more he looked at it, the more he felt that the other party's cannon was weird.

"Fuck!" he yelled: "He lied to us! That's fucking wood!"

The roar of artillery drowned out his curses.

The four wooden cannons roared one after another, and only one contained cannonballs - weighing weights, broken iron and other broken iron tools.

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

The gunpowder gas pushed the contents of the gun barrel out and flew towards the Hammer Castle.

The "cannonballs" hit the outer wall of the Hammer Castle, causing wood chips to fly everywhere.

A thunderous roar penetrated the smoke: "Surrender! Or die!"

The people in Hammer Castle pried open the wooden boards nailed to the door and ran out crawling: "Surrender! We surrender! Spare your life!"

In despair, Epel drew his sword and wanted to kill himself.

But the blade of the sword stopped at his neck, and he couldn't remove it. The more you hesitate, the harder it is to make a move.

He threw away his sword, sat in the corner, and cried in grievance.

[This chapter also has a map]

[The millstone tax really existed in history. Forcing serfs and even subjects to grind flour in designated mills was also something that feudal nobles did]

[Sorry for being late. Because the plot after entering the city is relatively intensive. It took some time to sort out the narrative sequence. The current narrative order should be the best]

[This chapter is also a big chapter, 6,700 words. The number of words is quite strange. Because the emotions are together, I won’t write them separately. Thank you everyone]

[Thanks to book friends for their collection, reading, subscription, recommendation votes, monthly votes, rewards and comments, thank you all]