Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 142 Institutional Arbitrage

Whether the    militia in Palatu is a "civilian man" or a "soldier" does not matter to other ethnic groups - they all go to work anyway.

   But for Dussack it was a world of difference.

   If the militia is a "soldier", then Dussac's service as a militia can be deducted for years of service, even if the militia is actually doing the work of the civilian husband.

   This was the idea of ​​Brother Rhett. After the old monk drank two bottles of wine, there was no door on his mouth.

  The old Dussack, who is still alive today, swore an oath with Marshal Ned 30 years ago to formally belong to the Republic of Palatu, and eventually settled and multiplied into the current Dussas of the new reclaimed land.

   And their descendants take the oath again when they come of age.

   But in all the oaths, only "eternal loyalty" and "service" are mentioned, and the specific form of service is not limited, which leaves room for interpretation.

  For Dussack, to serve in the military is equal to being a soldier, equal to murder, equal to holding up a saber and slashing down. This is a matter of course.

   They didn't realize that there was a big loophole in the system - the militia was also a soldier, and being a militiaman was also serving.

  For every day that Dussac joins the militia, theoretically, his service time in the future can be shortened by one day.

   While essentially exploiting a loophole, the Dussacks will be happy because the risk of their service is reduced;

  The other four villages in Wolf Town are also very happy, because they need fewer people;

   Winters was equally delighted that he had turned a bad thing into a mixed one;

   The only unhappy one is probably the Palatine Republic, which is governed by a clumsy, large, bloated system of power.

  It is so slow that it will take a long time to notice a small bleeding wound on its body, and it is unlikely that it will go to war just because it has been taken advantage of.

   This operation of "turning people into soldiers" was proudly called "system arbitrage" by the old magician.

The old man has even more extreme tricks: the premise of Dussac granting land is to complete the first phase of service, but the definition of the first phase of service is also vague. Participating in the service of the militia auxiliary force, and the service will automatically end after the militia auxiliary force is disbanded. Complete a term of service"?

   And there are even more extreme and extreme tricks: the "Tord Agreement" stipulates that when the situation is urgent, the resident officer has the right to recruit the civilians under his rule to form a militia team.

   But what is an emergency? There is no detailed explanation of the Told Agreement, and the right of interpretation is automatically delegated to the resident officer.

   And the town-level militia team is also a militia, legally equivalent to the militia recruited by the legion, and "serving" in the town-level militia team is also serving.

  So theoretically, Winters could directly declare the "urgent situation in Langtun Town" and set up a militia team on paper for the little Dussacs to serve in their names until the land was granted.

The endless routines of the old magic stick made the second lieutenant Montagne dazzled and dumbfounded. The poor second lieutenant entered the Army Infant School at the age of nine to live a well-behaved life. "Arbitrage".

  Compared with other institutional arbitrage tactics, the initial method is like a pediatrician, and it does not seem to be taking advantage of the public at all.

"But you have to pay attention, the last two moves are not a knife to bleed, but a big ax to chop the toes!" Brother Reid reminded Winters when he was hot with wine: "It is forcing the government to make up the loopholes, and it will definitely lead to the government. Retaliation. So don't go too far, let Dussak save some years of service as a militiaman, just to solve the source of the militia. In case of accountability in the future, you also have an argument. "

   But the old cultivator was obviously worried, because the mere act of "turning the people into soldiers" had already wiped out the second lieutenant's three views. As for more aggressive and greedy institutional arbitrage, Winters has no idea.

  Doesn't expect to change the way of life of the Dusa people, and he can make a small contribution to Wolf Town. Winters is already satisfied. He got a satisfactory answer at the Revodan station.

  …

Major    Ronald was hesitant at first, but Capt. Appel, the head of the station archives, cited an eight-year-old case in support of Winters' claim.

  Eight years ago, in Dashi Town, which is also under the jurisdiction of Tiefeng County. The officers stationed in the town urgently recruited Dussac to form a militia team to suppress the bandits, and in the process, the unfinished Dussac was unfortunately killed in battle.

  The custom of Dussack is that he will enter the army at the age of twenty. But in rural areas, marriage was earlier, and many Dussacs had children before they were born, served, or granted land.

   The underage Dusak who was killed in action against the bandits in Dashi Town left behind a son, a daughter and a widow.

   After the end of the bandit suppression, the militia team was disbanded, and the Dussacks from Dashi Town went to the headquarters of the garrison army to petition.

   It is hoped that the Legion will recognize the underage Dussack, who died in the fight against bandits, as "killed in service".

  Because Dussack, who did not grant land, only died while serving, and his son could inherit a land grant until he became a Ding, otherwise he would die in vain.

The    letter was finally handed to the table of Lieutenant General Ferenc, the then commander of the legion. Because the client, Dussac, was pierced by several arrows and still struggled to kill the thief until he died. Ferenc was greatly moved when he learned of it.

Lieutenant General    personally decided to recognize the dead as "killed in service", and also recognized as "injured in service" along with the wounded to give praise.

   This eight-year-old case provides support for Winters’ claim.

  Even if you want to argue in a military court, if you want to dismiss Winters' appeal, you must first dismiss Lieutenant General Ferenc's precedent.

   Winters had no idea that something like this had happened eight years ago, but it would have been nice to have a similar precedent.

Major Ronald thought about it for a long time, and reluctantly said to Winters and Girard: "This time the dice is as you wish, but will the dice in the future still be like this... I have to ask the legion headquarters. Row."

   All Dussac archives in this county are managed by the garrison, and Major Ronald, as the highest military commander in Iron Peak County, has a considerable degree of self-determination.

   He nodded, and the matter was over.

   Winters was also very excited for a while. After all, he had never thought about what would happen in the future. Everyone, including himself, thought that Winters Montagne would not stay in Palatu for a long time.

When Major Ronald sent Winters and Gillard out, he sighed inadvertently: "The son is not the creditor of his parents, but he can **** the blood of his parents more than the creditor."

   "Huh? The major agreed to see Mr. Mitchell's face?" Winters thought.

   He looked at Girard, but found that old Dussac was ashen and said nothing.

   "Senior, thank you for your help today."

   Walking out of the gate of the garrison, Winters sincerely thanked Captain Eper. It would not have been so easy to persuade Major Ronald if the captain hadn't cited the case.

   Unexpectedly, Captain Appel just replied indifferently: "I'm not helping you, I'm saying something. But if I want to say, Mr. Mitchell's sympathy is more useful."

After saying   , the captain and the two said hello and turned around to return to the small building of the garrison.

  Only Winters and Girard were left outside the courtyard walls, along with two horses.

   "Second lieutenant, do you want the children to work in the militia now and have less time to serve?" Gillard asked impatiently as soon as the captain left.

   Winters noticed the strangeness of the old Dussack's mood: "It can't be called a mess. The law of serving in the militia auxiliary force is the same as serving."

"I don't agree! It's an exploit! It's opportunistic! It's stealing!" Girard yelled at Winters for the first time since the two met: "Dussack is a hero who would rather steal than steal! It's time for business. Just go to work honestly, if you don't want to be a messenger, he...mom will rebel! Never! You mustn't do this kind of stealing! We made a blood oath with the old coach!"

  Gillard, who was always smiling on weekdays, suddenly burst into emotion, and Winters didn't know what to do: "Please rest assured, all of this is reasonable and compliant in the legal sense."

"But what about conscience? What about the blood oath we made? The Lord is watching from the clouds!" As he spoke, old Dussack became more and more depressed like a deflated ball, and he muttered to himself: "No Who wants to send their own son to the battlefield, why should I care what other people's sons do? Oh, you young people, do as you like..."

"It's my fault that I didn't discuss it with you in advance." Winters was touched by old Dussac's emotions, and he said apologetically: "If you think it's not possible, this incident has never happened, and I won't tell anyone else when I go back. ."

"Son, I know you are kind." Girard grabbed Winters' hand and used the name "son" for the first time: "I will tell the other Dussacks when I go back, and they should be very happy. , you young people... as you please."

  Girard saddles up wearily and leaves without a word.

   Winters didn't expect a good thing to make old Dussack so excited, he stood there for a long time before jumping on the horse and catching up from behind.

  …

  …

  The delivery of the goods from the estates in Wolf Township in Gervoudan went very smoothly.

  This year has been a good year, and it can be said that the weather is good, so there is no default.

   In addition to the output from several major commercial houses that made deposits in advance, the manors in Wolf Town also harvested many additional crops. This time, it was shipped together, and after bargaining, it was eaten by several major firms.

   Crops such as sugar beets are roughly processed on site in Gervoudan, and the transport of goods from Gervoudin to the provincial capital and further cities is handled by the merchant caravans.

  The harvest season ended completely, and the manor owner suddenly had a large amount of cash in his hand.

   Part of it is used to buy necessities for the next year's production in Gervoudan, such as coal, iron farm implements, wood, etc.

   There is another part to be paid to the hired laborers, but the wages of the hired laborers are mainly paid in the form of food rather than gold and silver.

  The owner of the manor will go back with the money, and then buy food from the Dusa people who have no shortage of land and excess food production, which is the most cost-effective.

   Of course, as compensation for the hard work during the harvest season, each employee will also receive a bonus - but there is no fixed amount, more or less is determined by the quality of the employer.

  Some ambitious manor owners immediately set off for the garrison, and they had to continue to enclose the land before the others.

  For example, the Bentins family, the Bentins and his wife were able to support their five oldest sons and two daughters, which was a miracle in this era.

   Considering the future separation of sons and dowry for daughters, they are also eager for more land.

  Profits are then put into the cycle of adding more land, and I don’t know when it will end.

  According to Winters' observation, most of the money in the hands of manor owners is turned into consumer goods: fine wine, snow-white cotton candy, beautiful furniture, percale muslin...all kinds of good goods, not to list them one by one.

  Gold coins and silver coins slip away from the fingertips like fine sand, in exchange for material pleasures.

  Winters also discovered a very interesting phenomenon: Cotton, hemp, and wood are produced in Wolftown, but finished products such as furniture and cloth have to be bought from Gervodin.

   The estates only produce raw materials, but have no ability to process them—except for tobacco.

The    estate economy is actually particularly vulnerable and is extremely dependent on a developed commercial system. If there is no merchant from outside to receive the goods, the planting cycle of cash crops in each manor will collapse immediately.

   But these have nothing to do with him, he just draws his own conclusions from the perspective of an observer.

   What he is most concerned about now is the situation of Veneta, so the team stayed in Gervoudan for the past few days, and he visited all the merchants in Gervoudan.

  Charle and Gold set off from Hailan very early, and they are not very clear about the current situation. Moreover, Ciel's vision is still narrow, and Gold is reluctant to elaborate, so that Winters has obtained very little useful information from them.

   But there is a common sense for Winters who was born in the Merchant Republic: no matter when and where, the merchants are the most well-informed.

The information    received was slightly different, but it still worried Winters.

   All kinds of intelligence indicate that the confrontation between the Federated Provinces and Veneta - the twins of the alliance - has not cooled down, but is intensifying.

  The merchants of Gervodin heard that in the Inner Sea, the fleets of Veneta and the provinces would intercept, inspect, and detain each other's merchant ships.

   There are even rumors that the navies of both sides are disguised as pirates to rob each other’s ships—of course, some businessmen say that because the navies no longer have time to take care of pirates, the pirates that had died down after the collapse of the Taniria Federation became rampant.

   As a result, there is no merchant ship that dares to fly the tulip flag and the red blood flag on the inland sea today. Ships flew the imperial flag to protect themselves.

  [The Tulip Flag and the Red Blood Flag are the navigable flags of the United Province and Veneta respectively]

   And more merchant ships simply left the inland sea or huddled in the port to take shelter from the limelight.

  The once prosperous and busy bay of Cenas has now become deserted and bleak.

   Originally known as the Inner Sea of ​​Cenas, which was filled with golden waters, it has now become the dead waters that sailors talk about.

  The land border has also been blocked, and only a few ports are left to maintain the only remaining personnel exchanges.

   The inter-provincial congress and the Veneta Senate quickly introduced one embargo bill after another, and what used to be almost unlimited intra-Union trade became illegal to sell anything.

  Now the trade between Veneta and the United Provinces can only go through Parato, but many Parato merchants have made a lot of money by doing entrepot business, which makes the merchants in the city of Gervoudan in the far southwest border very popular.

  I didn’t see the signboard of the Navarre business in the city, and Winters also inquired about the businessman in Gervodin. I didn’t expect that the business of the Navarre family was “well known to everyone.”

   According to the warehouses that purchased cotton, linen and other raw materials, their goods were sold to the Navarre business.

   It’s just that the big commercial firms only have branches in the provincial capital, and they only wait for other small commercial firms to deliver the goods, and will not go to the small cities below to receive the goods.

  The reason... It's the same as the Gervodin business that has to ask the owner of the manor to transport the goods to Gervodin. The road is not safe, it is all to reduce the risk.

   Winters thought about bringing a letter to the Navarre firm from the merchants of Torrevodan, but after careful consideration he decided not to do so.

   He did not trust the merchants in Gervodin, nor the branch of the Navarre firm, and he could not write important information even if he wrote a letter.

   And now that he has communicated with Hailan, he is not in a hurry to send the news back. Who knows if the Palatine will turn his letter over to the Palatine Army?

  …

  Time passed quickly in Gervoudin.

   After living in an open and quiet rural area for more than two months, it was a little uncomfortable to return to the city of Winters for a while.

   For three days, in addition to doing business and asking the firm for news, Winters also followed the believers into the Revodan Cathedral to watch Mass on Sundays.

   But the second lieutenant went to the cathedral with the mentality of a tourist, and in the end quietly avoided the Eucharist.

   In all fairness, the Cathedral of Gervoudin is indeed magnificent and gorgeous, even compared with the sea-blue St. Mark's Cathedral.

   The high vault seems to be smashed on people's faces from a height, making every human passing by feel their own insignificance.

   It's just that what Winters sincerely sighs is not the miracle of God, but the wisdom that human beings burst out in order to please the gods.

  Looking at the cathedral in front of you, it is hard to imagine how craftsmen used simple tools such as chisels, hammers and pulleys to create such majestic buildings.

   In the eyes of Winters, a sea blue man, Gervoudan is really not a rich city.

   But a city with only one or two thousand people builds such a cathedral, I really don’t know whether to call it extravagance or waste, ignorance or piety.

   Of course, what impressed Winters even more was the gorgeous sacrificial attire of the Bishop of Gervodin and the dazzling gold and silver objects on the altar.

The second lieutenant    couldn't help thinking: I'm afraid some of them are the tolls collected by the old man at Qiaotou, right?

  Just like that, three days passed quickly.

   On the fourth day from Wolf Town, it is time to start again and return to that remote, closed but lovely border town.

   But an hour has passed since the agreed departure time, and nearly half of the people still did not show up.

   asked the latecomer's companion to remind him several times, but still no one came, Gillard and Winters waited anxiously.

   Winters was so angry that he ordered the latecomer's companion to lead the way, and angrily searched for it with a saber.

   It wasn't until he came to the door that he understood why Nuonuo, who was leading the way, didn't dare to say it outright - it was actually a brothel.

   "Little Master, who are you looking for?" The fireworks woman inside the door shook her waist lightly, approached the second lieutenant with a smile, and even reached out to embrace the second lieutenant's waist: "Let's stay together too~"

Where did    Winters suffer from this?

   He kicked open the doors one by one with a livid face. When he saw the people from Wolf Town, he would punch him and wake him up, then reward him with a whip: "Okay! All the money you earn. His mother spent it on a prostitute!"

   The bruised-faced Dussack and the employees were caught by Winters to the meeting point, and Gillard understood at a glance.

   He asked with a sullen face: "Didn't I say over and over again that no reward is allowed if you don't go home? Are you all deaf to it?"

   He didn't ask the people who went to drink the flower wine, but the manor owners around him.

All those who were swept by his gaze bowed their heads in shame, and Vic Hoffman, the owner of Golden Spike Manor, bit his head and defended: "A few servants approached me and said they wanted to buy something to take back, I didn't think much about it. I'll give it. And everyone is too tired to walk all the way, so you should relax..."

"Shut up!" The furious Girard interrupted the old Hoffman sharply: "I won't listen to the explanation, don't follow the team if you don't follow the rules! Come on by yourself! You don't know that the long-term workers rely on this reward for a whole year to save money. Get some money?! Don't you know that the way back is more dangerous than when you came?!"

  Vic Hoffman was frightened by the murderous aura of the old Dussack, and did not dare to speak.

   The people and cars seem to be roughly the same, but after a careful count, there are still few people.

  Gillard grabbed a worker by the collar and asked, "Where's your master?"

   "Report sir, Mr. Benting went back first yesterday." The hired employee who was caught shivered: "He wants to go back to the enclosure first, he won't let me tell you."

   I've been a little tired recently, and my condition is not very good.

   But this chapter was the happiest one I wrote, and I couldn’t stop after writing it.

   Thanks to the book friends who have voted for recommendation before;

   Thanks to book friends Laotuwu, Calm Huikuo, and Jiang Xue Diaoweng for their monthly tickets, thank you all;

Thanks to the book friend 20191007064305842, the passerby, the red orange ii, the book friend 161120205936216, the ideal uncle of the twenties, the righteous and pure is a koala, the old black, the yellow rabbit of the flower gardener, the unemployed diaosi, the front of the moon night , Kepler B22, 54 months, behere370, recommended tickets for Sky Lens, thank you all, refills.

   (end of this chapter)