Iron Powder and Spellcaster

There is a rare excitement in the town, and the two main roads that are normally deserted are now bustling with people.

Farm carts parked one after another on the side of the road, and the dirt road was crowded with small stalls.

The second Monday of every month is the market day in Wolf Town. Not only villagers from several surrounding villages come here, but also Protestants who have rarely had contact with old believers.

It is for this reason that Lieutenant Winters Montagne placed the trial, execution and drawing of lots together today.

…

This border town shows its vibrant side today.

Traders from several nearby towns came to the market one after another, and farmers in this town also brought their excess agricultural and sideline products to the market to sell.

The honest farmer just spreads a piece of cloth on the ground, puts the fruits and vegetables picked from the fields on it, and waits for people to ask the price.

And the smart farmer is already letting his beautiful daughter sell eggs along the street carrying a willow basket.

The sounds of shouting, bargaining, and quarreling are endless.

Because there were public trials and executions of bandits - this was a big deal for farmers, and it might still be talked about twenty years later.

Therefore, farmers from neighboring towns even brought their families to watch the fun, and a vaudeville troupe that was touring nearby also seized the opportunity to come to perform.

Everyone was scrambling to get a good seat, and the atmosphere in the center of the town was not at all solemn as it should be for trials, executions, and the selection of selected soldiers. Instead, it was like a grand celebration.

The newly formed Wolf Town Guard is patrolling the streets and maintaining order. The seven guards wear helmets and armor and carry halberds on their shoulders. They look majestic.

The weapons and armor of the guards had just been bought from Gevaudan - Winters and Girard had added some equipment to the town's arsenal.

It's a rare trip to the county government, so I must get everything done at once.

The Wolf Town Guard now has a total of seven people. The two full-time guards are two and a half young men, Angelou and Bell, and the five part-time guards are militiamen selected by Winters from each village.

Although he is not a professional soldier, the peasant boy wearing a shiny iron helmet and brand-new leather armor is equally heroic.

It attracted the eyes and whispers of many young girls and young wives, and also made their friends in the same village extremely envious.

A young man from Dusak put his arms around Vashika's neck and laughed and said, "Okay! You'll look good in this outfit."

For Sergei's sake, the guard spot in the village of Dusa was given to Vashka Morozov.

"Don't make trouble, I'm on duty." Vashika replied with a smile.

Dussac looked up and down: "Did you buy this set from Gevaudan?"

"Of course, it's brand new, even the paint hasn't peeled off."

"When you're done today, let me wear it too."

"I'm not allowed to take it home. I have to return it to the arsenal after I'm on duty."

"Hey, what's the matter? Take it back secretly."

A silver-gray horse separated from the crowd and passed by the two of them. Vashika, who was chatting, caught a glimpse of the silver pattern on the horse's belly and was instantly startled.

Since the convoy returned from Gevaudan, no one in Wolfgang has been unaware of Second Lieutenant Montagne's "strong luck".

Vashika quickly stood up and saluted.

The second lieutenant on the horse nodded and continued to move forward.

"Oh, you've done me a terrible job." Vashika said to his companions with a sad face.

"What's this?" The other party was puzzled.

"Forget it." Vashika urged his companion to leave quickly: "Let's talk about it when we get back."

…

Looking around the center of the town, Winters didn't find anything out of the ordinary.

But on the roadside at the edge of the town, he saw Gilad having a big argument with a strange young man.

Seeing Winters, Girard waved happily: "Ensign Montagne!"

Winters gently nudged the horse's ribs and quickly stepped forward.

"This is the resident officer of this town, Second Lieutenant Montagne." Girard said to the young man: "The transaction you want to make must require his consent."

"Good day! Sir!" Before the second lieutenant could speak, the young man said first: "Although my business is often unfairly treated and discriminated against, it is absolutely reasonable and legal. Please see, this is a charter issued by the county garrison."

The young man handed over a roll of parchment.

After reading the content on the paper, Winters looked behind the man again:

There were several large tents set up on the roadside, and a sick old woman was sitting on the edge collecting money. Ragged men lined up to get in and come out with their trousers pulled up.

"Are you a pimp?" Winters asked, holding his saber.

"Sir, please don't speak so harshly." The pimp said with a flattering smile on his face: "I am just an intermediary, pulling the strings between skilled ladies and men in need."

Winters didn't bother to say more to the slick thing. He checked the charter again. The wording doesn't look fake, the seal doesn't look fake, and the signature doesn't look fake either.

Watching Lieutenant Zai check the charter again, the pimp's smile grew wider.

"A piece of parchment, I can't tell if it's true or false," Winters said nonchalantly.

The pimp's smile suddenly became stiff: "How could it be? This is a charter personally signed by Major Ronald of Gevaudan. Can you take a closer look?"

"Then you go back to Gevaudan and bring me a letter of certification?"

"Sir, there is a hidden mark in this charter that can tell whether it is genuine or not." The pimp wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked, "Please let me show it to you."

Winters handed the charter back.

With their hands intertwined, the pimp secretly thrust a bag of silver coins into the second lieutenant's palm. "Is the head office ready now?" he thought to himself

But he never thought that the "anti-counterfeiting mark" that had always been invincible would hit a wall this time.

Winters threw the money bag in front of the pimp and asked coldly: "You don't want your hand anymore?"

The young man fell to his knees in panic and begged for mercy, saying incoherently: "Sir! This charter is really true. I was confused for a moment..."

"Wait here." After seeing that the other party didn't look fake, Winters pulled Gilad to the security station.

He didn't know much about Plato's laws, so he had to find an expert who knew the law for this kind of thing.

…

The old mendicant monk Rhett listened to Girard's story, put the charter in his hand on the table, and said with a smile: "Plato does allow brothels to operate legally, and he is really right this time."

"Immoral!" Gilad's fire shot up to the sky: "There is also Hualiu's serious disease! I don't know how many Dussac were harmed thirty years ago."

The old monk stroked his long beard and said with a smile: "There are ways to legally ban them. It's not difficult."

"What?" Gilad suddenly became energetic.

"He privately occupied land in the town for business operations and could impound their people, tents and vehicles."

"That kid is up to something. He purposely pitched his tent outside the town."

"The entire land in Langtun is owned by the public. What's the difference between the inside and outside?" Brother Red said lightly: "Besides, to operate such a place in Plato, practitioners must be regularly inspected by a doctor and issue a certificate before they can take up the job. All kinds of procedures. After the investigation, if there is one less link, we can deal with him."

Gilad was speechless.

Winters persuaded the old Dussac: "I see that there are people from the logging team outside the tent. Those people live a hard life, and they are surrounded by men. It will be safer for the town to give them a channel to resolve. Besides, the charter does not It seems fake, since there is no need to use such means to embarrass the pimp, the best way is to let the residents of this town take care of their son."

Girard fell silent, and the town hall grew quiet.

Seeing that Old Dusak was persuaded, Winters stood up and said, "I'm going to talk to the pimp. Just today, get out of here as soon as possible after today."

Gilad nodded slightly.

Brother Rhett stopped the ensign who was walking out the door: "Have you thought about it?"

"Um."

"That's good."

The door was opened from the outside, and Angelou hurriedly said to the second lieutenant: "Sir, the executioner is ready."

…

If a person in Wolf Town breaks the law, any punishment up to the death penalty can be decided by the resident official alone.

If a serious crime is committed, a three-person trial committee will be composed of the mayor, the resident officer, and the envoy sent by the county.

But criminals like the "Horseshoe Ivan" gang - they are not residents of Wolf Town, but they are also active criminals.

There would be no trial committee and no defense allowed, the crime would have been established and Winters would only need to be sentenced.

Winters habitually approached Brother Red to discuss matters.

The old monk chuckled and said: "What kind of punishment is there? In the land of galloping horses, bandits and robbers are punished with death if they are caught. The only difference is how you want them to die."

"There is a kid among the gangsters who was arrested. He is only in his early twelve years." Winters hesitated: "I want to know if Plato's law will reduce his sentence?"

"No, but the sentencing power belongs to you. You can reduce the sentence however you want." The mendicant monk was as calm as a deep pool: "But to what extent do you want to reduce it?"

"exile?"

"Plato has not been exiled. Where should he be exiled? This is already the border of the Senas Alliance."

"corporal punishment?"

"Chopping off a hand effectively eliminates the possibility of his returning to the right path. Even farm laborers do not accept people who have been tortured."

"Hard labor? Flogging?"

"Don't you think this is too unfair to the dead Wolf Town people?" Rhett said slightly sarcastically: "Legally speaking, Plato does not recognize bandits and robbers as citizens of the Republic, so naturally they also Anyone can hunt them without any civil rights.

A twelve-year-old child does not join a gang voluntarily, but is forced to become one. Based on this, it makes no sense for you to commute his sentence. In a few years, you will see him in a gang in the new land. Just ask the executioner and you will know how many of the criminals he executed were habitual criminals who had been punished many times. "

"What should we do?"

"What should we do? Give him a piece of property so that he can support himself, and then he will not become a bandit again. But don't you think this is too unfair to the dead people of Wolf Town?" The old beggar monk His tone was calm: "You are an officer stationed in Wolf Town, not an officer stationed in the Horseshoe Gang. Your duty is to protect this land and people, not to worry about the fate of a gangster!"

…

When the executioner was ready, the church bells rang solemnly.

The guards of Wolf Town opened the cell door and escorted the seven bandits to the town square.

There were at least a thousand people watching along the road: farmers and Dussa people from five villages, long-term workers working in the manor, manor owners riding horses and their wives and daughters in carriages... Almost all the people in Langtun came. Come to town.

Seeing this formation, the nervousness of several guards was palpable, and beads of sweat appeared on Gilad's forehead, fearing that something might go wrong and cause a commotion.

Suddenly a woman squeezed through the wall, rushed to the prisoner, and beat the prisoner with the stones in her hands.

Vashika and another guard hurriedly stepped forward to separate the two. The woman was pushed to the side, fell to the ground and cried bitterly.

The bearded prisoner who was beaten laughed loudly and spat at the woman.

Upon seeing this, Vashika became furious and punched the bearded prisoner in the center of his face.

The prisoner was beaten so hard that his nose bone and two front teeth were broken on the spot. Before he could spit out the blood in his mouth, another guard took out a rag and stuffed his mouth full.

There was a burst of cheers from the crowd of onlookers, and the news spread as fast as the wind. People already knew that the woman was the wife of the deceased.

The people of Wolf Town present all depended on hard work to make a living, so naturally they were full of resentment towards the bandits. Coupled with sympathy for the unfortunate woman, the anger burned even hotter.

In the short walk from the police station to the town square, stones and curses kept flying towards the prisoners.

The trial process was very simple. Several Dusak told the story of the day of the ambush in Tusche Field. Mr. Bentin Jr. also appeared in court to identify the culprits, crying and demanding blood for blood.

After the simple process, the town square was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. People waited with bated breath for the final verdict of the town official.

The sentence was pronounced in a cold voice: "Death penalty, all."

The cheers spread from the front row of the human wall to the back. The prisoners who had been gritting their teeth before finally couldn't help but burst into tears. The childish voices cried the most miserably.

But no one cared about their tears. The guards dragged the prisoners from the ground and took them to the execution place. People followed the guards and swarmed towards the execution place.

In the open space on the northwest side of the town, the town's carpenters built a temporary platform a few days ago.

The executioner Franz Schmidt, revered as "Famous Master Franz", was dressed in costume and was already waiting there with his assistants.

The closer we get to the execution ground, the more emotionally collapsed the prisoners on death row become. Some prisoners on death row are struggling for their lives, while others are crying and begging for the blessings and forgiveness of onlookers.

The executioner Franz and his assistants take over everything when the condemned man is brought to the execution site. The guards were visibly relieved as the condemned man was handed over to the executioner.

All that remains is the ritual performance of the executioner.

Franz, a famous teacher who is over sixty years old, has sharp eyes and strong energy. He has carried out hundreds of executions and has his own way of dealing with death row prisoners.

A death row prisoner struggled and cursed desperately, and the executioner's assistant, Franz's sixteen-year-old grandson, could hardly control him.

The old executioner walked over and stabbed the death row prisoner's Adam's apple.

The big man who had been struggling and cursing just now became silent all of a sudden, clutching his throat and falling to the ground with a red face.

As for those prisoners who were just chanting scriptures desperately and praying for forgiveness, Franz ignored them.

The old executioner signaled his grandson to execute the prisoner whose throat had been hit hard first. The two men carried him onto a "judgment chair" on the execution platform and tied him with ropes.

Father Carman stepped forward, allowed the death row prisoner to kiss the book, and listened to the death row prisoner's final confession.

The noisy crowd of onlookers gradually became quiet, and people watched the executioner's preparations attentively, for fear of missing any detail.

The old executioner wore a set of attire that could be described as abrupt, strange and dazzling. The lower body was pink tight stockings and light blue knee-length shorts, and the upper body was a blue white-collared tights.

He took off his hat as a sign of respect.

He also put on a leather vest to prevent blood stains on his top.

After the preparations were completed, he nodded to his assistant. The assistant understood the meaning and respectfully presented the weapon to the person in charge.

The old executioner grasped the hilt of the sword and pulled the decapitating sword out of its sheath in one breath.

The execution drama reached its climax.

It was a weapon that could be called a giant sword. The blade was more than one meter long, weighed more than six kilograms, the blade was flat without a tip, and the front and back of the sword were the same width. It was completely forged for beheading.

A line of text is engraved on the surface of the sword: "Beware of evil deeds, otherwise it will be like digging your own grave."

The execution ground was as silent as death.

The famous master Franz stood solemnly in his position, raised the decapitating sword behind his right shoulder, took a deep breath, and suddenly exerted force.

The sword drew an elegant arc in the air, cutting off the two cervical vertebrae of the condemned prisoner from the right rear.

The head flew out, and the bones fell to the edge of the execution platform. Blood spurted out from the broken neck, splattering all over the executioner and his assistants.

The assistant picked up the head, held it high in the air, and walked around the execution platform to show it to the crowd.

Accompanied by several ladies' screams, the execution ground that had been silent just now erupted into cheers.

Harsh government and miscellaneous taxes lead to rampant banditry, and rampant banditry will inevitably lead to harsh punishments.

Brother Red's words were ruthless and true: What needs to be decided is not whether the gangsters will live or die, but how they will die.

"How do you want to execute them?" The famous executioner asked the same question when he met Winters.

Burning, hanging, drowning, wheeling, chariot-breaking... Each execution method corresponds to different crimes.

Executions were not just about killing the prisoner, they were a spectacle in themselves.

The public trial, the procession before the execution, and the execution itself constitute the three major elements of this horrific drama.

Honest and conscientious people work hard just to have enough food and clothing, but they can get something for nothing by being thieves, robbers, and bandits. Common people hate bandits, but they are also secretly jealous of bandits.

Public executions are not only to deter the people, but also to declare the authority of secular rulers, and to give hard-working families a channel to vent their resentment.

The calm and reliable executioner represents public power and executes criminals in a programmed and ritualized manner. He is the soul that maintains the fragile and delicate balance between the three.

Beheading—the method of death chosen by Montagne’s garrison—was painless and clean.

It is also the only execution method that respects the dignity of the deceased.

The famous teacher Franz glanced at the remaining six death row inmates, and when he saw the sobbing child, he thought: "Heinrich [Franz's grandson] is probably only a few years older than him."

He signaled to his assistant that the youngest death row inmate was next.

Every breath taken in the execution ground is a kind of torture for the death row prisoner. This is the mercy of the executioner.

"The bearded man who spat at the family of the deceased." Franz thought to himself: "Let him be the last."

The execution scene in this chapter comes from "The Faithful Executioner", a book about the life of a 16th executioner, but has been adapted somewhat to fit the setting of the book.

Thanks to the book friends who voted for recommendation before;

Thanks to book friend Jiang Xuediaoweng for his monthly ticket;

Thanks to book friends Justice and Purity is Koala, 54 Months, The Flower Planter’s Yellow Rabbit, 20181010005850390, Book Friends 20191007065305842, Smoke Dispersed, I don’t know what it is called, Kaka Kakajia, Sky Lens, Kepler B22, Jiang Xue Diao Weng , 92 Jiang Meng Meng Da, Last Night's Stone, Nothing is Xiao Gao, An Ideal Uncle in His Thirties, behere370, Moon Night Front, Sky Lens, Calm Gray Pass, Yakumo Zimo, Soda Bird, thank you all for your recommendation votes.