Iron Powder and Spellcaster

After leaving the tent, Winters led Pierre straight to the stables, prepared two humble riding horses, and temporarily changed clothes with the stable manager.

Then, he took Pierre and quietly left the wooden village of Wen Duoer's old camp through the back door.

As soon as he left the sight of his subordinates, Winters became bolder in his actions. He walked openly among the felt tents around the old camp, listening to the sound of pianos everywhere and enjoying the dances around the campfire.

The group of felt tents was like a maze, and from time to time someone would come out of the blind spot, so Winters carefully controlled the horse and let it walk slowly.

Pierre was half a horse behind Winters.

"Are you a little bored?" Winters, who was walking in front, asked without looking back.

"What? Your Excellency?" The surroundings were too noisy and Pierre didn't hear clearly.

Winters simply pulled the reins, stopped the horse, and stood shoulder to shoulder with Pierre.

"Are you a little annoyed? At the banquet just now, when we were receiving the subordinates," Winters asked with a smile.

"There is a point," Pierre answered honestly. "They are trivial matters that are a waste of your time. It is enough for you to appoint one person to deal with them."

"That's true," Winters laughed, "so from now on these things will be left to you."

He changed the topic again: "But I have to correct you. In the wilderness, there are no trivial matters. Let alone a horse, even a dispute over an arrowhead is a matter of life and death."

"Please make it clear." Pierre bowed his head humbly to allow the conversation to continue.

Just then, Winters was in the mood for conversation, so he rode his horse, pointed his riding crop at the felt tents around him, and said to Pierre:

“Many Palatuan people consider the Heds to be ‘barbarians’ from the bottom of their hearts, and find it ridiculous to argue with the law against a group of barbarians who are killing each other.

"However, it is actually the opposite. 'Savages' need justice more than 'civilized people'. Because if there is no higher authority to resolve disputes for them, they can only resolve disputes by themselves. And when they resolve disputes by themselves , there will be more disputes.”

Pierre nodded frequently.

"Take that dispute about the foal, for example." Winters saw that Pierre did not fully understand, so he patiently explained with an example, "If no one arbitrates the dispute for them, guess what, this case How will things end?"

Pierre knew without even thinking: "It will bleed."

Winters nodded slightly: "Yes, there will be bloodshed. If the dispute occurs between two families or tribes that have enmity, there will even be rivers of blood.

"Whether it is in the 'savage world' or in the 'civilized country', if people tell Wu Men, they will solve the problem through other ways. In the wilderness, the 'other way' is to speak with bows and arrows, which is to shed blood."

"Just like no animal likes to be injured, no one likes to bleed," Winters said with an emphasis on his tone, "even if he is a savage in the eyes of some people."

Pierre understood the blood wolf's reminder. This time, he no longer nodded inertly, but nodded slowly.

Winters doesn't like others giving him repeated orders, and he also hates giving others endless instructions. Seeing that Pierre had listened, he stopped talking and mentioned another thing that the two of them had witnessed.

"The White Lion gave the Red River tribe a set of laws engraved on a golden tablet. This was a great progress. From then on, the law was the authority of the White Lion. He only needed to - as you said - delegate a A famous archer can satisfy the judicial needs of the Chihe tribe by deciding cases according to his laws."

Winters laughed at himself: "It's not like me. I have to take action myself, otherwise I won't be able to convince the Hurd people who have joined us."

Pierre tried to give advice: "You can also give the Wendol people a law, and I will defend its authority in the new lands outside."

"No, we can't give Waixin land a set of laws, no." A helpless and mocking smile appeared on the corner of Winters' lips: "Guess why?"

This time, Pierre was really questioned. Fortunately, Winters didn't want to question Pierre at first.

He asked himself and answered, "Because we already have a law!"

"Is it the law of the new land or the law of Plato..." Pierre asked tentatively.

"No, the laws of the new land and Plato are only the above-ground part of the building. I'm talking about the rammed earth, the stone foundation, and..." Winters paused for a moment and spit out one word, "The Charter of the Alliance." "

"What happened to the Charter of the Union?"

"The Alliance Charter is nothing. The Alliance Charter is very good. The problem is that it is too good," Winters sighed. "It is so good that it is impossible for us to implement it in the current foreign lands."

Pierre frowned slightly.

The two of them had walked out of the felt tents, but Winters did not rush to let the horse run. Instead, he continued to walk slowly in order to explain to Pierre:

“In the past, the Platoans could kidnap the Hittites and sell them into slavery without any scruples, because the Hittites were neither citizens of the Alliance nor heretics.

“But if we formally accept the Outlander as part of Plato, then slave-catching is an unacceptable crime.

"Not only that, but those little leaders who have joined us and raised slaves are also trampling on the Charter."

Winters whistled: "Think about it, what will happen if I return to the palace tent now and announce in public that all the slaves in the Wenduo'er tribe will immediately acquire the status of white people?"

Pierre thought for a while and replied calmly: "They dare not disobey you, so they will pretend to obey. But once they are out of your sight, those little leaders will immediately become rebellious."

Winters approvingly tapped Pierre's forehead with his riding crop and concluded: "So we cannot give the Waixin Reclamation a proper law, because that would violate the basic principles of the Charter of the Union; we also cannot Implement the Alliance Charter in Waixin because the Charter is not suitable for the actual situation in Waixin.”

After saying that, Winters smiled and joked: "What's more, we haven't fulfilled our promises in the Alliance Charter yet, so what qualifications do we have to boast to the Hedians?"

The topic was obviously serious, but Winters' tone was light and humorous, as if he was talking about an interesting neighbor's story.

However, it is precisely because of Xue Lang's open-minded attitude that although Pierre has a clear understanding of the irreconcilable nature of the contradiction, for some reason, he is still confident in solving the problem.

Therefore, Pierre boldly asked: "Is that why you will take 'hostages' from the Hurd people in the new land? To ensure their loyalty?"

"Hostage?" Winters raised his eyebrows in surprise, but he quickly figured out what Pierre was talking about and couldn't help laughing: "Are you talking about 'Drew Flower'? 'Drew Flower' is not a hostage. , are vassals, attendants, servants, soldiers, domestic slaves... Dabai and Xiaobai are 'Druhua', do you think they are hostages? "

After arriving at Waixin Reclamation, Pierre asked Bell Assault for advice on many Hurd folk customs.

However, at this moment, little Mr. Mitchell's brain, which was filled with various Herdian words, was once again confused by 'Hestas'.

"Your Excellency, aren't Dabai and Xiaobai 'Hehar'?" Pierre tried not to show his confusion on his face, "If they are 'Druhua'... then what is 'Hehar'?"

Winters was speechless for a moment, and he also fell into the same strange trap that Bell had fallen into - there was no word in the Imperial language that could accurately match the Hurd vocabulary.

But after all, the blood wolf is better than his pups, and Winters came up with a wonderful metaphor.

"Do you know Hodel?" Winters first asked a name that was impossible to name.

Pierre was stunned for a moment, "That 'monkey' who is lucky enough to be your personal guard?"

"Yes, that's him." Winters smiled and patted Pierre on the shoulder with his riding crop: "You are my 'Hehar', and Hodel is the 'Drew Flower'. Understand the difference between the two. Subtle difference?"

Pierre didn't understand anything, but he felt enlightened. He still couldn't explain 'Hehar' and 'Druhua' in rational language, but he completely understood the emotional difference between the two words.

"Also, I didn't ask for it from them, but they gave it to me as gifts." Winters continued to explain, "The eight or nine-year-old Hurd children are already herding sheep. The fourteen- and fifteen-year-old Hurd boys are already herding sheep. People who can work as adults are extremely valuable assets to every family in the wilderness."

Winters gave Pierre a meaningful look: "Don't say it is a Herdsman, even for the farmers of Plato, labor is still a valuable asset. Therefore, the person who gave the gift is not me, but It’s not them that I should be grateful for, it’s me.”

"Sorry, I was wrong." Pierre didn't dare to meet the blood wolf's gaze.

"What's right or wrong?" Winters smiled and enlightened Pierre: "Hostages or soldiers, it just depends on how you look at it.

“Besides, many times, hostages and soldiers are the two sides of a breastplate.

"Those little leaders who have joined us probably also believe that they can only be safe if they hand over hostages, so they rush to 'tribute' Drew Flowers."

Winters said to Pierre sincerely: "It's just that they handed over their children as hostages, but we can't treat their children as hostages. Do you understand?"

"I understand." Pierre nodded vigorously.

"I plan to take these children to the new land, but the time is not yet ripe - so I will teach them in the old camp for the time being."

An ominous premonition came into Pierre's heart.

On the other side, the smile on Winters' face grew stronger and stronger: "I will send you a teacher, but until I find a suitable teacher candidate... you have to take on the important responsibility of educating them."

Pierre's worst expectations came true.

"It's your turn to experience my hard work back then." Winters patted Pierre on the shoulder with his riding crop.

"I...I don't understand Khedic, Your Excellency..." Pierre's mouth went dry, "Bell...yes! Bell is more suitable..."

"Of course Bell will help you," Winters said with a stern face, "but if anything goes wrong, I will only come to you - I can leave them to you."

Before Pierre could react, Winters clamped his knees, stabbed the horse in the ribs, and rushed out like an arrow.

Pierre stood there stupidly for a while, then chased after him dumbfounded.

The two of them, one behind the other, galloped along the "road" pressed by the wheels.

Winters was in front, running with clear purpose; Pierre was behind, following in ignorance.

The two rode toward the northeast until sunset, when they climbed a hill and a lake suddenly appeared in front of them.

The afterglow of the setting sun turns into golden threads, weaving fine stitches on the water.

Groups of wild geese fly over the lake, gathering and dispersing as if dancing a never-ending dance.

As the sun sets, lights are already lighting up on the other side of the lake.

A lighthouse stands alone among the looming lights, calling the fishing boats leaving the port to return.

As soon as Pierre saw the lighthouse, he immediately reacted: "Is Shovel Harbor opposite?!"

He looked around the open lake: "Is this Shovel Lake?!"

"Yes, there is Shovel Harbor across the way." Winters pointed with his riding crop to the lakeshore at the foot of the mountain, intending to test Pierre, and asked with a smile: "So, where is this place?"

Pierre could not answer.

As we all know, the west coast of Shovel Harbor is "no man's land". How can there be any place name?

Winters rephrased the question: "What did you see?"

"I saw nothing, sir," Pierre answered truthfully.

"Then let me tell you what I saw."

Winters looked up to the sky and laughed. Thousands of waterfowl were frightened and flew straight towards the sky.

"I saw docks, warehouses, rows of shops, granite-paved roads, and crowds of pedestrians..."

Wolf Blood pointed at the lake shore with his long whip and outlined the future with great energy: "The rocky beach is five fathoms deep, enough to dock a barge of 100 tons. With two plank roads built, eight ships can be unloaded at one time...

“A road that can accommodate four vehicles parallel is paved along the gravel beach, and an equally wide road is paved against the gravel beach. The southern block is reserved for shops, and the northern block is set up as a warehouse...

"From the headland over there to the foot of the mountain, dig a trench, build a wall, add a fort every two hundred meters, divert water from the lake to fill the trench, and then build a fort on the earth bag under our feet now , even if thousands of troops come to attack, he will still be beaten to death..."

"Don't worry about the nondescript title of 'Supervisor'. It's just to make you less visible and avoid being hated by others."

Winters sat majestically on the saddle and told Pierre with high spirits:

"You are the actual 'Governor' of Waixin Reclamation! This will be your seat of government, and your rule will start from here!"

Pierre was not excited at all. He lowered his head and dug at the reins in his hands for a long time. Finally, he mustered up the courage to ask the question that the little lion had asked him but he could not answer.

"Your Excellency." Pierre said with sincere eyes, "Excuse me, why do you want to acquire Waixin reclamation land?"

Winters looked at Pierre again with a slight surprise. He was glad that Pierre could ask this question, but he didn't want to reveal his inner thoughts easily.

So he thought for a while and said: "Then let me ask you two questions first, Pierre Geralnovic."

"Just ask."

"What do you think is your top priority as the governor of the Waixin Reclamation Territory?"

Pierre answered without hesitation: "Collect the blood tax, recruit enough cavalry as soon as possible, arm them and train them so that Waixin Reclamation can defend itself and make Wai Xin Reclamation a new source of strength for you."

"Wrong!" Winters shouted: "Big mistake!"

Pierre shuddered unconsciously.

"Listen! Pierre Michel!" Winters warned sternly: "Your first priority is to let the people on this land live and work in peace and contentment! You must rule fairly and wisely! You must set aside boundaries for them. Dingcaochang! You must resolve disputes for them! You must defend them as you would your compatriots! You must let them live on this land voluntarily, not out of fear. Living on this land is your first priority!”

"Your secondary task is to prevent the Chihe tribe from infiltrating the tribes on the south bank and guard against the resurgence of the Teldu tribe."

"Your final task is to collect the blood tax."

"And these three tasks are interlocked. If you can't protect the environment and the people, then you can't stop the White Lion from spreading his influence to the south bank of the Jinliu River, and the Teldun tribe will resurrect. At that time, the Waixin Reclamation Land will be unable to sustain itself. Not to mention becoming a source of strength for the Republic, it will become a bleeding wound for the Republic. "

Winters looked at the young man in front of him with piercing eyes: "Do you understand? Commander Pierre Gerardnovitch Mitchell."

Pierre's face was burning, as if he was being burned by the scorching sun.

"Yes!" he replied decisively.

Winters's expression softened a little, and his tone became gentler: "Now, let me ask you a second question - do you think that the Platuan people and the Hedians will continue to attack each other along the track of the past? Where will the end of the road be?”

"Our victory!" Pierre answered again without hesitation.

Winters smiled: "Why are you so confident?"

"The decline of the Hurd tribes is doomed. Their advantage of bows and fast horses is gradually losing, but our muskets and cannons are becoming more and more sophisticated," Pierre's tone was extremely firm, "The battle of the Great Wilderness is about Failure is just a bump on the road to the end, victory will eventually be ours!”

Winters shook his head and nodded: "Your conclusion is correct, but your argument is problematic. Is the bow and fast horse the advantage of the Hedians? The Platuan people can also ride horses and use them. Bows; muskets and artillery are the advantages of the Platoans? The Hedians can also use guns and cannons.

"What really gave the Palatians the upper hand over the past thirty years was not guns and spears, but a standing army and a country that could support a standing army.

"At present, I have not observed any signs of the collapse of the standing army system of Palatians or even the Alliance, so your conclusion is correct. The Palatians - or the Alliance, will eventually win."

Winters changed the subject: "But when I asked you 'where is the end', I was not asking you who will win, but asking you 'what will the victory of the Palatians look like'?"

Pierre raised his head and met the blood wolf's deep eyes.

In an instant, he recalled the stories he had heard from his father since he was a child, recalled the expulsion, looting and slaughter of the Hede tribes by the Palatians in the past thirty years, and recalled everything he had seen in the Battle of the Great Wilderness.

Where will this road end?

Pierre felt a little dry in the mouth, but still gave an answer: "The Hede people will be wiped out. "

A smile flashed across Winters's lips: "Pierre, it is impossible to 'eliminate them completely' by killing. It is not a moral issue, but a problem of ability.

"But I generally agree with you. Even if the Herd people will not be completely wiped out, there will not be too many left. At least most of the Herd people we saw today and their descendants will not survive - do you think this is a good ending?"

Pierre answered with a hard heart: "Solving the problem once and for all should be a good ending."

Winters did not comment, but turned around and looked at the lake under the setting sun, and did not speak for a long time.

Pierre silently accompanied the blood wolf behind him, letting the wind sob.

In the vast wilderness, only two people and two horses stood still.

The world is so vast, and people are so small. There is no more lonely feeling than this.

"Pierre." Winters suddenly said: "Now let me tell you why I set up a new land for reclamation."

Pierre lowered his head to the back of the blood wolf and listened attentively.

"Because I want to rewrite the fateful ending you think it is!"

"I want the Hud people to become part of the alliance! Not in the way of 'we kill them all' or 'they rule us', but in the way of 'we rule us'!"

Winters turned around and made a vow with high spirits and fighting spirit:

"The Wendor tribe is just a starting point, and the new land outside is also just a starting point.

"I want more than just the new land outside.

"I want to completely quell the violent spirits that were born on this vast wasteland and brought countless deaths and disasters to the Palatians and the Hud people!

"This is my purpose! My goal! My mission!

"I have never disclosed my wishes to anyone. You are the first person in the world to hear my arrogant words."

Winters smiled and stretched out his hand to Pierre: "Do you want to join me?"

Since leaving Wolf Town for the second time, Pierre has never shed tears again. But at this moment, for some reason, Pierre's eyes are a little moist.

"I will go to the destination you pointed out." Pierre held his chest and bent over: "Even if it takes a hundred years."

"A hundred years? I thought you would say two hundred years!" Winters laughed and patted Pierre on the shoulder: "Yes, I did not choose you wrongly. We need this kind of optimism."

Pierre pretended that the wind and sand entered his eyes and wiped his eyes hard.

"A hundred years may not be enough. You, me, our children, and even our children's children may not be able to see the arrival of that day."

Winters sighed, then smiled again, looking at Pierre: "So, we should embark on the journey as soon as possible, right?"

(Calming down the violent spirit, the end)

...

...

[Postscript]

"Is this a little guy?" Winters Blood Wolf Montagne, who was as still as a mountain when thousands of troops rushed over, was shocked.

Bell looked ashamed, his eyes tightly hooked on the tip of his shoes: "Yes."

"Is this a little guy?" Winters looked at Pierre in disbelief.

Pierre also looked helpless: "This... it was already like this when I came..." Bell was about to cry: "It's all my fault. I didn't discipline the little guy well..." "It's your fault for not disciplining it well." Winters glared at the little hunter: "It's my fault for not disciplining you well!" In front of the three people, the little guy who was once agile and majestic was struggling to move towards the three people. Just looking at the four legs and tail, the little guy seemed to have not changed much. But the body supported by the four legs swelled up like a bladder. This is not still a "little lion", it is clearly an "old pig" in front of Winters. No! Pigs don't have this body shape! After just a few steps, the little guy was already out of breath. But it obviously still remembered someone's smell. It came to someone excitedly and with difficulty, and gently rubbed the back of someone's hand with its broad forehead. The little guy was very careful to use his strength, otherwise this rub could push someone over. The heart of stone was melted when he saw this scene. Winters sighed, touched the little fellow's forehead, turned to the "lion husband" who was serving the little fellow, and said viciously: "[Hede] From today on, its food will be reduced by half... No, by a quarter, and in half a month, it will be reduced by another quarter! And so on, find me another chance to replace the dead sheep with a living one!"

The Hed man who was responsible for taking care of the little guy's food and drink looked horrified: "[Hed language] Batu! You can't do it! The holy beast will get angry if it doesn't have enough to eat!"

"[Herd] If it eats, I will get angry." Winters gritted his teeth: "[Herd] Just choose one!"

[Another case where the barbarians (in quotation marks) needed justice more were the Vikings]

[Today, the image of the Vikings has been solidified by film and television works into the image of uncivilized people wearing horned helmets, drinking mead, rowing long boats, burning, killing and looting everywhere]

[But in fact, the Vikings were relatively reasonable internally. For example, the Icelandic Vikings had no recognized leaders and no government agencies until 1262. They relied entirely on a set of unwritten customary laws to maintain social operations]

[Although the Icelandic sagas (orally transmitted narrative poems) are full of vendettas, there are also many plots in which conflicts and disputes are resolved through conferences and judicial trials. Perhaps it is because there are too many vendettas and people are ready to use the ax at every turn. On the contrary, everyone cherishes ways to solve problems without using the axe. So even though the Viking courts were not backed by public power, the Icelandic Vikings still respected the court's ruling]

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