Iron Powder and Spellcaster

After a few days, the municipal councilors of Gevaudan gathered together again.

Most of the committee members are old faces, but there are also some new faces.

Mayor Priskin Sr. sat in the front row with his eyes closed and meditative. His second son, who had been elected as a city council member a few days ago, was also sitting next to his father.

As for the purpose of the tribune convening the city council, the municipal commissioners had a clear idea - it was to solve the flour problem.

Hurd Barbarian didn't see it, but it was clear that the price of flour had increased. The poor can't even afford batter, but the price of flour is still rising.

The poor class is full of complaints, and the citizens from well-off families are also a little bit overwhelmed. The matter has become serious enough that it has to be solved.

The tribune was not present, and the mayor did not speak. The committee members whispered among themselves:

"Your mill has been making less money recently, right?"

"Hey! Flour is so expensive and you can't even sell it. How can you make money?"

"Okay, okay, stop pretending. If you can't sell it at a high price, are you willing to sell it at a low price?"

"There are so many mills and grain stores in the city, why can't you get along with me?"

"Just wait and see, the blood wolf will come soon and he will definitely attack us."

"It's nothing more than a price limit. If he asks for a price limit, then I will sell it at a price limit."

The door flew open, and the city councilors immediately fell silent.

Under the gaze of everyone, Winters, who was wearing military uniform and carrying a sword, walked into the meeting hall carrying two round, hairy things.

Father Carman followed Winters reluctantly.

"The heads of the Teltown people." Winters threw the two heads on the ground casually: "Shovel Port had a battle last night, a small victory."

The two heads rolled on the ground several times, and finally stopped at Shao Sha's feet.

Shao Sha lowered his head and met the dead man's blank eyes. There was obviously no smell, but Shao Sha smelled a fishy, ​​sticky stench. He resisted the urge to vomit and tried his best to look away.

Charles and Heinrich walked into the venue carrying a box of bloody Hurd helmets, armor, and machetes—all of which were obtained from Shovel Harbor.

After Winters briefly explained the fighting in Shovel Harbor last night, he politely told the city commissioners: "There are still eighteen heads, which have been sent to each town for circulation. If any of you don't believe that the barbarians are coming to kill you, you can stand Look closer.”

"I've seen it, Your Excellency." Shao Sha tried his best not to look at his feet and begged urgently: "This body... let's take it away."

"Okay then." Winters ordered Charles and Heinrich: "Show the committee members the helmet and armor. Forget about the head."

The armor and weapons were passed around to the municipal committee members, and it didn't take long.

"These things will be put on display in the Place Gévaudin for the public. If you are interested, you can also go to the square to see them." Winters motioned to his men to put away the trophies: "I have called you here today not to show you your heads, but to show you your heads. To solve the problem of rising flour prices.”

After saying this, Winters patted Father Carman on the shoulder.

Karman sighed and walked to the stage to salute the city councilors: "Thanks to the generous donations of all gentlemen, Gevaudan Abbey has been able to distribute wheat porridge to poor believers. Please accept my prayer."

None of the municipal committee members dared to sit still and hurriedly returned the greeting.

The church takes care of things after everyone's death, and everyone naturally has a certain amount of awe and respect for the clergy.

Father Karman looked solemn as if he was preaching: "But the price of flour and wheat has skyrocketed recently, and the monastery is no longer able to provide relief to the believers. In the slums, picking leaves and digging grass roots to satisfy hunger has become a common thing, and some believers are even selling their children. Gevaudin is now like sitting on a chair. On the volcano, as long as there is a spark, the situation of refugee riots will happen again.

[Treat others as you would like others to treat you]. I also hope that you gentlemen will lend a helping hand at this difficult time. "

Winters continued what Kaman said: "I have drafted a decree. Let's take a look and discuss it. If there is anything wrong with it, please raise it."

The draft decree, written on white paper, was circulated among the city commissioners. The content of the draft is very simple, that is, to limit the selling prices of flour, wheat, barley, and rye.

There are many millers, grain merchants or people who participate in the grain business among the municipal committee members, and everyone is mentally prepared for the price limit policy. The boots actually hit the floor, and they breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sir, my eyes are too dim to read clearly." Old Priskin stood up tremblingly and asked respectfully: "Please allow me to ask, do you want to limit the price?"

"Please take a seat, Mr. Priskin." Winters nodded: "Yes, I want to limit the price."

"No!" Old Priskin suddenly opened his eyes and shouted categorically: "Limiting prices is absolutely not allowed!"

The municipal committee members in the meeting hall were trembling with fright.

"Tell me about it." Winters crossed his arms: "Why not?"

Old Priskin was leaning on a cane, his back straight: "There are more and more people in the city, and there is less and less food in the city. It is natural for prices to increase!"

Winters didn't speak, but Father Carman couldn't help but said: "Then don't care?"

"You can limit the price, and merchants don't have to sell! The higher the price limit, the less merchants will sell. If it's unavailable on the market, flour will flow into the black market. By then, the actual price of food will be pushed even higher."

Father Carman was speechless.

"If you want to solve the food price problem, you can only use my method."

"explain."

Old Priskin uttered one word loudly: "Search the house!"

There was an uproar in the meeting hall, and the municipal committee members were either shocked, suspicious, or angry.

Old Priskin's words were resounding: "The horse's hooves are on the top of the head and the scimitar is by the neck. Whoever dares to hoard or speculate is a criminal! His property should be confiscated and his family should be confiscated!"

Some municipal committee members looked angry, some were panicked, and some even left their seats and almost ran away on the spot.

Winters looked around the lobby, taking in everyone's expressions, and suddenly slapped the table and laughed.

Carman, Charles, the city commissioners didn't understand, and even old Priskin didn't understand.

"Old Mr. Pusliskin, don't mention this method again. If I wanted to kill people, I would have done it long ago. Why do I need to call you for a meeting?" Winters leaned back and laughed loudly. He pointed Everyone in the hall said: "Look, they all thought you and I had colluded in advance and were acting."

Old Priskin turned around and looked back. The other city council members did not dare to look at each other and lowered their heads.

"I swear to St. Peter that today's matter has never been mentioned to the tribune." Old Priskin glared at the other municipal councilors: "You are a bunch of short-sighted fools. Gevaudan is short of food, but it is by no means a food shortage. A malt of rye costs a kilogram of silver!”

Old Priskin became more and more angry as he talked, his face turned as red as blood, and the tip of his beard was trembling: "There was less wheat this year, and the price of food was so high that the poor have long been unable to afford bread!

Good luck to you! The barbarians haven't even arrived yet, yet you dare to raise prices unscrupulously! If we really push the people of Xiacheng District to a dead end, you and I, will we still survive? There is no need for barbarians to take action, there will be civil strife in Gevaudan soon..."

There was silence in the meeting hall, only the thunderous roar of the old man could be heard.

"Okay." Winters signaled Old Priskin to stop: "I have other things to do today and don't want to waste time. If you have any ideas, just mention it."

Old Priskin bowed deeply to the tribune: "Please confiscate all the property of the speculators, and the food price problem will be solved naturally!"

"No." Winters waved his hand: "Let's find another way."

"Then there's only one way left."

"explain."

Old Priskin gritted his teeth and said, "Please allocate military rations to help the poor."

Charles glared at Old Priskin, the city councilors who had just breathed a sigh of relief tensed up again, and even Father Carman was a little surprised.

Winters was not angry. He asked calmly: "How many days will my army rations alone be enough to survive? If the army rations are exhausted, what will my soldiers eat?"

"Please set up a warehouse for the poor!" Old Priskin pressed his right hand on his chest: "Your army and the municipal government of Gévaudan will jointly provide food and share the responsibility of helping the poor."

"Can you represent Gévaudin?"

"I am the mayor of Gévaudan, of course I can represent you." Old Pris glanced at the municipal committee members with a hawk-like gaze: "If anyone thinks that I am not qualified, please stand up now."

Winters sneered: "I am willing to provide food. Are you guys from Gevaudan willing to provide food?"

"Of course I don't want to!" Old Priskin replied openly: "So you can't take it for free, but buy it with a loan. The price is based on previous years. The army will pay one marten, and the Gevaudan city government will provide two martes. The food collected in the poor warehouse is regarded as a debt of the Gévaudan municipal government and will be slowly returned in the future.”

"If you buy it, sell it." Winters rubbed his chin: "In the current situation, how do you plan to sell it? How much grain you put out will be bought. When the time comes, the price of flour will still not come down. Will it be given out in vain? How much grain is enough? hair?"

"Raising food is only the first step! The key lies in the second step!" Old Priskin bowed deeply again and petitioned loudly: "I, Priskin, would like to ask you to provide work for relief!"

…

…

Carrying the letter sent back by Colonel Bode from Baishan County, Charles braved the cold wind of early winter and crossed the Church Bridge to reach the south bank.

The south bank, which was originally just woods, wasteland and farmland, has now become a bustling construction site.

There are more than 3,000 men and women working. In addition to more than 1,300 Wargne County prisoners, more are unemployed and farmers hired from Gevaudan and nearby villages.

Every two hundred people on the construction site are divided into a team, and two captains, a captain and a deputy, are designated to be responsible for different work sections.

Men dug trenches and built walls, while women passed on the soil. Old people who were unable to work were put in charge of cooking.

There are also several teams responsible for leveling the land and cutting down trees.

The five teams with the lowest progress can only receive half of the food, while other teams can receive full food, and the top three teams even have meat supplies.

"Team performance" is a lazy approach, but it works well in the short term. As if being whipped by an invisible whip, every team is working hard.

In addition to "food", there is another reason for people to work hard - "the barbarians are coming to kill".

No matter how clever Winters writes, it is not as useful as the bloody heads of twenty Tertun people.

Facing the rotting, stinking, and distorted heads of the barbarians, even the most numb, bold, and disdainful people in Tiefeng County who were most disdainful of the new government's orders truly realized: "The barbarians are really coming."

The impact of Winters' "The First Fifteen Towns" has been both good and bad.

The good side: No longer needing his urging or admonishment, the farmers in Tiefeng County were like squirrels spending the winter, spontaneously starting to dig hard in the ground to store food and property.

The bad side: Anyone with some money in each village and town took their families and took refuge in Jevaudan. As a result, food and living space in Gévaudan became even more scarce.

Therefore, the construction of Nancheng must not only be bigger, but also faster.

When Charles found Winters, Winters was talking with Captain Mason, the old Mayor Priskin, and the blacksmith Shosa.

"Lover Lin must be cleared as soon as possible." Winters told Senior Mason: "If you can't chop it all down, burn it all down."

"I'll arrange someone right away."

"Does Lover Lin also need to be chopped down?" Shao Sha was a little confused.

The Lover's Grove is a sparse grove in the southern suburbs of Gevaudan. It is called the Lover's Grove because there are always lovers meeting in it.

"The wood is used to build the city, and the branches are used to make fire." Winters tapped the map lightly: "In short, it cannot be left to the people of Teltown. Mr. Shaosha, the Forge Township must also be evacuated immediately."

"Okay, okay." Shao Sha nodded first, and then asked quickly: "Where to evacuate?"

Winters showed a smile and tapped his feet: "Just retreat here and move everything that can be moved to the 'Southern City'."

"Sir." Old Priskin asked respectfully: "I see that the completed city wall is only two meters high?"

"Yes, it's two meters high," Winters replied.

"Isn't it a little too short?" Lao Pusi looked confused: "If it is only two meters high, it seems that it can be turned over."

"Shortness has its advantages. If the city wall is short, it can be built quickly. The city we want to build is too big. If we build a high wall, the Teltown people will have already killed us before we finish the work." Winters comforted the old gentleman: " Don’t worry, I’m measured.”

After hearing what Tribune Montagne said, old Priskin stopped talking.

Winters picked up a graphite strip and drew three small stars on the map. He pointed at the small stars and said with a smile: "According to my original idea, not only should there be a city wall, but also three star-shaped fortresses should be built outside the city. Cover three walls. That’s how it’s impregnable.”

Senior Mason nodded in agreement, and Old Priskin and Shaosha were confused.

Winters threw away the graphite strips and sighed: "But we don't have time, so we will save these. I hope the enemy chief's level is similar to last time. In that case... I will be a little more sure."

"Have you fought against the barbarian chief who came this time?" Shao Sha became more energetic.

"We fought."

"Then..." Shao Sha asked hesitantly.

"I was only a centurion at the time, so I was not commanding that battle." Winters laughed and patted Shaosha on the shoulder: "But that battle - our army won a great victory!"

Shaosha also laughed. Seeing that war was really about to begin, Shao Sha felt really unsure, so he was eager for any piece of good news, even the most trivial one.

"Mr. Pliskin." Winters asked casually: "What is the mood of the city councilors and grain merchants? Are they satisfied?"

"Not satisfied." Old Priskin replied respectfully: "But they can still accept the current conditions."

The most brilliant thing about Old Priskin's [Food for Work] strategy is to clarify property rights.

The south city under construction is obviously also part of Gevaudan, so it is natural for the city of Gevaudan to fund this project.

The process of relief became [Revaudan borrowed money to purchase grain from the army and grain merchants, and then distributed it as a reward to the unemployed who came to work].

The army and grain merchants paid for grain in exchange for debt. As long as the Gevaudan municipal government does not go bankrupt, the debt can be paid off slowly.

The municipality of Gévaudin was deeply in debt, but got a new town. It seems like there is no loss?

The unemployed poor obtain food by working, avoiding the cash run that may be caused by free distribution or low-price sales.

All three parties suffered a little loss, but also gained something. In a sense, it seemed to be a happy ending.

Winters couldn't help but ask Priskin Sr., "How did you come up with this cash-for-work program?"

"I didn't think of it." Old Priskin lowered his head slightly and asked with a smile: "Sir, do you know how Gevaudan became prosperous?"

“This is the county capital, so of course it’s prosperous.”

"No." Old Priskin shook his head slightly: "It was Gevaudan that prospered first and then became the county capital. And the reason for Gevaudan's prosperity is Gevaudan Cathedral."

"Huh?" Winters' curiosity was aroused.

The elder Priskin recalled: “When there were only a few dozen settlers here, the Catholic Church decided to build a cathedral here as the seat of the bishop of Tiefeng County.

It took twelve years to build the cathedral. During these twelve years, craftsmen and businessmen gathered here from all directions. By the time the cathedral was completed, Gevaudan had transformed from an inconspicuous little village into the most prosperous town in Tiefeng County. "

Winters listened carefully and pondered: "You mean...long-term, large-scale projects can make a barren place prosperous."

"That's how I feel." Old Priskin stroked his beard: "To tell you the truth, I have traveled a lot. In many towns I have seen, their center is a castle or a church.

The construction of churches and castles would last for years or even decades. Craftsmen would settle nearby, and merchants would follow suit. A village may become a small town, and a small town may become a prosperous town. In my opinion, that's probably the case. "

"It's very interesting." Winters' eyes were bright and he said with a smile: "Your idea is really interesting. Let's have a good chat after we drive away the Telton people."

The elder Priskin readily agreed.

Seeing that the conversation between several people had come to an end, Ciel quickly handed the letter to Winters.

"Colonel Bode's letter," Charles whispered.

Winters calmly opened the letter and read every line.

"How is it?" Senior Mason asked.

Old Priskin and Shaucha didn't know who Colonel Bode was, so they resigned in good faith.

Winters stopped Old Priskin and Shaucha: "You two don't need to avoid it, this letter has something to do with you two."

Shaucha looked puzzled, but the elder Priskin listened quietly.

"The bald colonel of Baishan County agreed." Winters laughed: "We will count the goods that have not been shipped out in time, and Baishan County will exchange grain and salt with us."

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

[It’s been a little late lately... redefine noon? After all, at this moment, there is always a place on the earth where it is noon]

[After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, "counter-urbanization" began to occur in Europe. That is, the city cannot continue to sustain itself, and urban residents are gradually dispersed. “The urban population began to flow back into the rural population”]

[In the Middle Ages, the construction of a church or castle was sometimes enough for a group of craftsmen to last a lifetime, because it often took more than ten years or even dozens or even hundreds of years]

[During the project, the craftsmen also have to live a normal life, so there will be some businessmen providing services to the craftsmen. In this way, it gradually gained ‘popularity’]

[In addition, the locations of castles and churches are also good places, and new towns are often formed as a result. This can be regarded as a kind of "urbanization" process in the Middle Ages. ]

[There is a documentary called "How to Build a Castle", which is quite interesting. The "mason" is the general person in charge of the project. He needs to manage the following blacksmiths, carpenters, masons, bricklayers, various large and small workers, etc. ]