Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 243 Accounts

   "Will kill! Or let us go!" Second Lieutenant Adam kicked the door and roared at the guard: "Have fun! Why torture people! You bastard!"

  Unfortunately, the soldiers outside the house seemed to be deaf, turning a blind eye to the enraged ensign captive.

   This made [Lovrensix Adam] more angry, and he slammed the door hard: "Open the door! Open the door! Open the door!"

  The roof trembled with his impact, and the fine dust fell and danced in the sunlight.

  The soldiers outside still didn't say a word, just moved a few pieces of wood to hold the door.

   "Enough!" Major Ronald next door stopped the second lieutenant: "Save your strength! Don't injure yourself."

   Hearing the Major's words, Adam stopped panting.

   Officer prisoners were held incommunicado in a farmhouse outside Gervoudan.

   They were neither killed nor released, they were given two meals a day, and they were locked up like that.

  At first, some people thought that Winters was going to recruit them, and everyone agreed to be a traitor for this.

   But that little boy never showed up.

   Then, some people think that Winters is using them for ransom, or as a bargaining chip.

   But the guards outside didn't show that. To be precise, the guards didn't talk to them at all.

   As a result, the anxiety and unease of the captured officers increased day by day.

   "Senior!" Adam walked up to Captain Epert: "You said a few words! How is the situation outside? When will General Adams send troops? What's the matter with you?"

   The farmhouse is small, with only two rooms. One for Major Ronald and one for the other lieutenants.

Among the    lieutenants, Eper was originally the major's deputy, and the lieutenants naturally took him as the backbone.

   But since the captain was locked in, he hasn't said a word.

   He became a moving body without a soul, neither worried nor angry, only numb.

  Adam yelled, but Eper didn't even look at him, and continued to hug his knees and look out the window.

"That bastard, Montagne, how did you make you look like this?" Adam was distressed and angry, he rushed to the window and yelled at the guard: "Call Winters Montagne here! What kind of evil did Senior Eper do! [Severe geographical discrimination against the Veneta people]!"

   "Adam." Eper said suddenly: "Come here."

  Adam was startled at first, and subconsciously walked over to the senior.

  Epper patted the floor: "Sit down."

  Adam sat down obediently.

   Then, Eper returned to his previous state, looking out the window without saying a word.

  Adam sat for a while, then got up angrily.

   "[Old language] What Winters is doing, I can probably guess something." Lieutenant Istvan folded his arms, leaned against the window, and carefully observed the outside of the farmhouse: "[Old language] Very interesting."

   When officers don’t want the guards to understand the conversation, they use the old language.

   "[Old language] Do you know what the **** he's up to?" Adam asked in surprise.

  Istvan spit out a word: "[Old language] Decree on land reclamation."

   “[Old language] what?”

   "[Old language] The Legion Headquarters' "Law of Reclamation" is to recruit refugees to open up wasteland. Didn't you realize that for the past few days, you haven't seen a single refugee outside?"

"[Old language] It doesn't matter what Montagne is doing." Adam's mind was entirely on another matter: "[Old language] Senior Epert's mind has been damaged by witchcraft. You take the lead, we think Way to escape!"

   "[Old language] You can't escape, you don't even have a horse, how can you escape?" Istvan chuckled: "[Old language] But you can try."

  …

   Winters didn't mean to hang up the seniors, but because he was so busy that he forgot all the seniors.

  Winters sent all the scouts at hand to the neighboring Mont Blanc and Vernge, which are adjacent to Iron Peak County, to monitor the every move of the New Reclamation Corps.

   At the same time, Lieutenant Colonel Moritz, Lieutenant Juan and Andre were leading the cavalry to patrol the roads in and out of Tiefeng County day and night.

   Winters issued a [Blockade Order]: No one is allowed to leave Iron Peak County, and no one is allowed to enter Iron Peak County without the approval of the garrison.

  He wanted to hide Iron Peak County in the fog as much as possible.

   And all the energy of Winters at the moment is on the exile camp outside the city, and he even eats and sleeps in the exile camp.

  Bard stayed in the city most of the time, and was in charge of the affairs of Revodan.

   As for Captain Richard Mason, as the second-highest rank officer, Senior Mason disappeared all day, and he rode out of the city every morning and came back at night. It is said that he was looking for the bell maker.

  …

  The refugee camp has a chilling atmosphere.

   A large number of refugee peasants came to Gervoudan to beg, and Gervoudan did not allow refugees to enter the city. They only put porridge outside the city every day, and even temporarily built a city wall to stop the refugees.

   The victims who were guarding outside the city barely managed to stay in tents with a few wooden sticks. They gathered more and more and eventually formed a huge, dirty and muddy camp.

  This so-called camp has no such thing as a camp wall or a "border" at all.

   But now, it has.

After   Moritz and Don Juan attacked Gervodin, they immediately dispatched troops to control the refugee camp.

After   Budd arrived in Gervoudan, he intensified his control over the camps.

   Originally a refugee camp without borders, now there are two circles of "walls" surrounded by wooden stakes and ropes.

   There is a distance of about six meters between the two circles of walls, and soldiers patrolling with determination and determination.

  Any refugee who entered the clearing between the two walls would be whipped and hanged—a rule set by Bard himself.

   "Don't run away! Don't make a noise! ​​Don't grab the porridge!" These are the three rules that Bard set for the refugees, and the punishment is very monotonous.

  The dead body hanging from the stake in the clearing is the most straightforward warning.

   Even Andre and Don Juan felt that Bud had gone too far, let alone Winters, Moritz and Mason.

   But Bud was determined to do it.

   Major Ronald had no good way to take refugees. He chose young and strong men to serve as soldiers, and left the rest outside the city. Every day, he distributed some porridge that was boiled and boiled again.

   He was just procrastinating.

   And Winters and Budd, to solve the problem once and for all.

  …

   "What's it called?" Winters asked without looking up.

The refugee farmer in front of    answered tremblingly, "Peter."

  Behind Peter, a long line of ragged victims lined up with no end in sight, extending into the depths of the camp.

   It's not that they voluntarily lined up, but that whips and sticks hurt too much.

   Hearing the farmer calling himself [Peter], Winters had a splitting headache because this was the fourteenth Peter he had met today.

   is also impossible. From commoners to princes and nobles, everyone uses those common names over and over again.

   Not to mention that some church aristocrats will restrict their choices, stipulating that subjects must choose their names from the scriptures.

  Many farmers never leave their hamlets for the rest of their lives, with limited populations and no name repetition.

   But Winters now wants to [edit account Qimin], and duplication of names has become a big problem for him.

   Fortunately, he has already thought of a way.

   "What town or village are you from?" Winters asked the farmer.

   "Qingfeng Town." The farmer replied in a low voice, "Shibi Village."

   He did not dare to speak loudly, because the camp enforced military law, and noise was strictly prohibited.

  Whoever dares to make a loud noise will be caught and whipped immediately.

   Thanks to such brutal methods, less than 300 soldiers temporarily suppressed the refugees who were dozens of times their number.

   This is not a long-term solution, Winters must decompress before the explosion.

   Looking at the tanned face of the farmer in front of him due to his long-term work, Winters said helplessly: "If you are dark, you are called Peter Black."

   The farmer named Peter was stunned and nodded after a while.

  Winters quickly scribbled a few lines on the paper: "You are Peter Black from Qingfeng Township and Stonewall Village, not to be confused with other Peter Blacks."

   "My lord..." Peter asked timidly, "Is there any other Peter Black?"

   "Yes." Winters snorted: "Yes. Age?"

"what?"

"How old are you?!"

"thirty-one."

   "Do you have any land at home?"

   "No, I farm the land for Lord Kwa."

"Married?"

"No."

   "Then you don't have children, do you?"

"No."

   "Father, mother, are you still there?"

  Peter's nose was sore: "It's all gone."

   "My condolences." Winters sighed: "Live well, there will be a way to survive."

  Peter didn't know what to do, so he nodded blankly.

   Winters took out another small wooden sign, wrote [Peter Black of Qingfeng Town, Shibi Village] on it, and handed it to the other party.

   "This is your name, and you will have to use this to get food in the future." Winters pointed behind him: "Go over there, show this to that person, and go to the camp in Qingfeng Town."

  Peter didn't react yet, he just stood there stupidly.

   "Past!" Winters rolled his eyes unconsciously.

   Now Peter understood, and he ran forward.

   He couldn't help but take out a small wooden sign, which had a line of letters and a series of numbers.

   "This is my name?" thought Peter. Someone had taught him to recognize names, but he couldn't remember them.

   Before taking a few steps forward, he was stopped by another soldier.

   The opponent grabbed his wooden sign arrogantly, looked at it, and rudely stuffed it back to him.

   "From Qingfeng Town! Go to the southernmost camp!" The soldier warned in a rough voice: "If you go wrong, you will eat a whip!"

  Peter Black of Qingfeng Town and Shibi Village went all the way to the southernmost.

After    was checked on the wooden sign again, the soldier responsible for the door let him enter the Qingfeng Town camp and stuffed him with a large piece of black bread.

  In the camp, he accidentally met his countryman, another Peter.

   Before that, he didn't even know that this fellow called "Fisheye Peter" was also in the camp.

   "What's your name Peter?" Fisheye asked eagerly, and he said happily: "Your Excellency says fisheye is unpleasant and awkward. So I'm not called Fisheye now, but Peter Fisher!"

   "My name is now... Peter Black." Peter Black replied with a little pride.

   On the other side, another farmer came to Winters.

   "What's it called?" Winters asked without looking up.

   "Peter," replied the farmer in a low voice.

   A moan came from the deepest part of Winters' chest, and his head hurt even more.

  …

   The refugees must be separated, and they must not be allowed to get together. This is the unanimous view of the six-member group.

   For refugees, quantity is courage.

   One victim may be timid, but a hundred victims dare to loot a village, and 10,000 victims can loot a city.

   The refugees must be separated, but they must not be too scattered, otherwise it will be inconvenient to manage.

   Dividing into 16 sub-camps according to the place of origin becomes the most reasonable strategy.

   And staying with fellow villagers, refugees will feel more secure.

   Winters didn't know how the white lion "edited Qimin", he could only do it according to his ideas.

   "Weave the people like baskets", you must first know how many people there are.

  Winters recorded all refugees outside the city as a family unit, according to the five items of [male and female], [age], [birthplace], [healthy], [family members and property].

   All his soldiers who can read and write were transferred to register the refugees, including Winters himself.

   He also borrowed thirty-three bookkeepers and scribes from various houses in the city.

   "Blood Wolf" spoke, and the merchants happily sent their employees over.

   Winters also temporarily gave lessons to some smart soldiers, teaching them to read the most basic words.

   For example, the soldier guarding the Breeze Town camp, he can't read at all - it's a waste to send a soldier who can read and write to the door.

   But he was still able to perform his duties well, because Winters taught him to recognize the word [Qingfeng Town].

   Refugees leave the main camp, go through screening and registration, and then enter the branch camps in each town.

   Although this process is bumpy, it is generally orderly.

  As everyone gets familiar with the work at hand, the efficiency becomes higher and higher.

   And compared to the dirty and filthy refugee camps, the new camps planned according to the temporary military camps are obviously more comfortable.

   Winters even personally led people to dig toilets for each camp - epidemic prevention is the top priority.

   After entering the sub-camp, they distributed food to the refugees as soon as possible.

  It's not gruel, but bread, so you won't panic when you're full.

   Anyway, the refugees have no property. All their property is carried on their shoulders and in their hands. Wherever they have food, they can go there—it is a bit like the nomadic Hurds.

   Winters hated repetitive labor.

   Naming the refugees made his head dizzy, and he couldn't help but think, "It would be great if the refugees could read and write! They write by themselves, I can just take a look at them."

   But soon, he rejected the idea.

   How is it possible that everyone can read and write? It must be in heaven, right?

   "Or do I teach all the warriors?" Winters came up with an alternative: "Let them do the work and I won't have to."

   He was thinking so when Ciel came running out of breath.

   "Why are you still here?" Charles stretched his knees and asked, panting, "You forgot who was here today?"

   "What?" Winters asked rhetorically, but he kept moving his hands, accurately placing a registration sheet into one of the sixteen wooden boxes.

   "Miss Navarre is coming to Revodan today!"

   Winters stood up abruptly and the chair was knocked backwards.

   "Ciel!" Winters raised his chair, pressed Ciel onto the seat, and put the quill into Ciel's hand: "Come on!"

   After saying that, he jumped into the saddle and galloped away.

  …

  Although, it is very irrational to rush the family members to Gervodin before they can gain a firm foothold.

   However, Winters really misses Anna so much, and Anna misses Winters too.

  So when Pierre came to meet in Gervodin, he also escorted the female family members.

   Winters should have gone to greet him, but when he saw Anna, Anna was already waiting for him at the officer's mansion in the garrison.

   "My sister and I are really honored that you can come here during your busy schedule." Catherine smiled and curtseyed to Winters. She was reluctant to leave her sister, and she followed Gervodin.

   This level of cynicism, Winters has been able to ignore.

   He walked straight to Anna and hugged Anna hard.

   Katherine exclaimed, kicked Winters angrily in the calf, and turned to leave the room.

   "You shouldn't come here, it's too dangerous here." Winters hugged his lover tightly.

  Anna hugged her lover's neck: "But aren't you here?"

  …

  Winters meets Pierre and Scarlett at the stable.

  Changsheng and Bottayun were also brought to Gervodin, Scarlett was breastfeeding Changsheng, and Pierre was with his sister.

   When Scarlett saw Winters, her first sentence was: "Bothayun can't give milk, I want to give Changsheng goat milk and milk to drink."

  Changsheng already looks like a little pony, fading away from the feeling of fragility when he was just born.

   Winters stroked Changsheng: "Okay, I'll go look for it."

   "A horse that grew up drinking goat's milk?" Pierre joked: "Can you still ride it? Find another horse with a foal."

   Leave Scarlett in the stable, Winters and Pierre have something very important to say.

   "There's something you can do," Winters said to Pierre.

   "I will," Pierre replied without hesitation.

   Winters didn't say anything else. There was nothing to say between him and Little Dussack.

   He didn't need to explain how important things were and why Pierre had to go.

  Pierre will not complain that he has never been idle since he was tired of traveling and traveling between Gervodin and Wolftown.

   "Berion Sawyer." Winters said a name.

   "Blacksmith, cook." Pierre nodded.

   "He was held by the blue rose, that is, in Alpad's hands." Winters looked at Pierre: "I want you to determine his location."

  Pierre nodded calmly.

  Alpad had a large number of Dussac cavalry in his hands, so the calm and agile Pierre of Dussac was the only one suitable for the task.

   "Who do you want to take?"

   "Washka, pick an older Dussack."

   "What else do you need?"

   "Gold coins, lots of gold coins."

   "Go to Lieutenant Bud, you can go to him if you need anything."

"Yes."

   "Be careful." Winters squeezed Pierre's shoulder: "Just confirm the location. You don't have to force the rescue, I will go there myself."

   "Don't worry." Pierre showed a slight smile.

This is a rare thing for Winters to say "follow me" instead of "follow me", but he is no longer a centurion, he must adapt to let his subordinates do something independently, and he also has to learn to trust and rely on subordinate.

   Winters would have liked to ask a few more words.

  The rapid sound of hooves interrupted his words, and a red-maned warhorse galloped into the courtyard, and it was Anglo who was riding on it.

   "Centurion." Anglo got off the saddle and handed Winters two letters: "Mr. B wants to give it to you."

  Two letters, one with the logo of the New Reclamation Corps, the other with a black cross on it - meaning 100,000 urgent.

   Winters first read the letter from the New Reclamation Corps, and his eyebrows were raised slightly as he watched.

   Then he glanced at the black cross.

   "What's the matter?" Pierre asked worriedly.

   Winters handed the letter to Pierre.

  The first letter came from Maplestone City and the headquarters of the New Reclamation Corps.

   did not specify who the recipient was, and only used the title [Revodan Station].

The content of    is very simple. The headquarters of the legion asked the Revodan station to pay in all the rations that should be paid this autumn.

   The second letter is from Lieutenant Colonel Moritz.

  The content is simpler: The New Reclamation Corps troops in White Mountain and Vigne are gathering.

   [Slightly revised last chapter]

   [If you want first and last names to really enter thousands of households, you need to point out the "census" policy first; population "censuses" are nothing new, such as William the Conqueror's "Book of Doomsday". But the real "census" will take a long time, and the "refugee check" system can be regarded as the forerunner of the census]

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

   (end of this chapter)