Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 273 Beacon Fire

   The next day, Mason was delighted to learn of Colonel Broad's decision.

   Because of the hangover, the senior's cranial cavity was empty and painful.

   He said bluntly: "Okay! Great! Now we are finally no longer 'a small group of foreigners commanding a large group of Palatine people'."

  Senior Mason sincerely hoped that the Colonel would join the team.

  As the new government of Tiefeng County, the local government of Palatu, the leaders are all Veneta and Union Provinces, and the composition is really embarrassing.

   In other words, now the territory is small, the population is small, and the reputation of the blood wolf can still deter those who want to move. The new government has not been caught and beaten.

   And the addition of Bode Gates will make the concentration of Platonics at the decision-making level break through from [0] to [14.3%], which can be called "a small step for a colonel, a giant leap for the new government".

   But... the military concentration is still 100%.

   Apart from the above reasons, the senior still has a little selfishness.

   Bud is not here, Winters is not around, and others can't see it. The big and small things inside and outside of Gervoudan are now all on Mason's shoulders, causing the senior's hairline to recede at a speed visible to the naked eye.

   It is impossible for the senior to ask for one more helper to share the common duties.

   But Mason did not invite Colonel Broad.

  Who is Bode Gates?

   In terms of status, he is the chief captain of the Sixth Army Corps, and is only half a step away from the position of the army commander; one day in the future, it is logical for him to get the baton of the general.

  In terms of background, he was born in a famous Palatu family; the [Bode] family has as long a history as the [Arpad] family, which can be traced back to the period of the seven ancient tribes of Palatu.

   Want to recruit him for the "Rebels"? The odds are slim.

   Mason didn't know what method the junior had used to convince the colonel. Although he was very happy, he was always a little uneasy in his heart.

  …

   Colonel Bode attended the resolution meeting, without ceremony, let alone introduction - several of Winters were his subordinates. Add a chair next to the table, and you'll be all the way through.

   Winters made the opening remarks: "The total number of votes in the resolution meeting has always been an even number. The colonel is participating, and we no longer have to worry about a tie!"

  Senior Mason applauded weakly.

   Lieutenant Colonel Moritz was not present - Winters had not yet found a chance to inform Colonel A and Mr. B of the existence of Mr. Winters, Mason and Colonel Bode in the conference room.

   "Wait, I haven't promised to rebel against you yet." Colonel Bode leaned back in his chair and sneered, "Don't be in a hurry to count me in."

   "How can it be called a rebellion?" Winters asked suspiciously: "We are all appointed officers of the Republic of Palato."

   Colonel Bird snorted softly, ignoring Winters.

   "Winters came to tell me excitedly this morning, saying that you joined the army." Mason joked: "Is it a lie about military intelligence?"

   Colonel Bode raised his eyebrows: "Join in? Are you robbers? Do you want to swear again?"

   "If you want to take the oath... there is no problem. I will lend you a holy relic." Winters warmly recommended: "How about the emblem of St. Aldous? It is said that there is a fragment of the true holy emblem hidden inside."

"Don't be sloppy, I didn't drink too much last night. I can stay at Iron Peak County-Alpad, I don't want to go; I don't bother to serve those stupid councilors sent by the Kings Castle." Colonel Bode changed his conversation, His eyes also became serious: "But there are two things that I must ask clearly."

   "Excuse me." Winters sat in a precarious position: "I won't lie to you if I can answer the question."

   Colonel Bird stared at Winters closely, trying to see the clues from the latter's eyes and expressions: "What is your relationship with the Heards?"

   "Hostile relationship." Winters spread his palm.

   "I'm not asking about the Teltown Department." Colonel Bode leaned forward involuntarily: "I'm asking about the Akagawa Department! It's the Akagawa Department who fought us bloody, captured me, and released me back!"

   "Two years ago, I accidentally rescued the younger brother of Yaxin, the white lion. It's that simple."

   "Yasin owes you a favor, so put me back?"

"Don't always try to use me as a scapegoat." Winters supported his chin and said with a chuckle, "I have fulfilled my responsibilities in Palato, Bianli, and Styx. You feel bad, you should go Get mad at Janos, Arpad, and Sackler. Why blame our little centurions?"

   "Stop prescribing me! I'm not trying to **** you off at a defeat, you know what I mean."

"Then I will answer you in full." Winters put away his smile and looked directly at Colonel Bode: "The white lion let me go, perhaps to repay the favor. Because at that time I was alone and had nothing. Let you go. When I came back, I was obviously helping me. The purpose was nothing more than three points.

"First, if I can gain a firm foothold, he can trade with the outside world through me; second, Tiefeng County resists the New Reclamation Army, no matter who wins or loses, it will consume Plato's power; third, Iron Peak County is right next to the sphere of influence of the Teltown Department, and I have an old grudge with the fire roaster, and he can use me to contain the fire roaster.

   kills three birds with one stone, why not? And what the white lion has paid so far is nothing more than your slave. Since he sent you back, should I say 'no' and send you back? "

   Colonel Bird's face turned from red to white, then from white to blue, his cheeks clenched tightly, and he did not say a word.

   Mason was terrified by the side, and he gently pulled Winters to signal his younger brother not to be so aggressive.

  Winters ignored the senior and continued: "I have never sold the interests of Plato to the Hurds, nor have I sold the interests of the Platos. I am upright and have a clear conscience.

   But if the tribes of Heard take advantage of my actions, although I do not wish, I will not stop there. The New Reclamation Corps sent troops to beat me, so I can't stop fighting back just because the Hurds will make a profit? "

   Colonel Bird was speechless.

   After sitting quietly for a while, he sighed deeply and asked again: "Second question. Since you have connections with the Chihe Department, do you have any way to get those prisoners back in the wasteland?"

"There is a way! And I will do my best to rescue them - there are my subordinates among the slaves." Winters took out a knife: "I had a verbal agreement with the White Lion to exchange materials for prisoners. As long as you give me a chance, I will We will open up the trade route to the Chihe Department and exchange people back little by little."

   "Material exchange for prisoners?" Colonel Bode asked with a frown. Plato maintained a blockade of the wasteland for a long time and exchanged materials for prisoners, which was nothing more than smuggling.

   "How about otherwise?" Winters asked back: "I don't get goods, but for gold and silver? Not only do I have no gold and silver, but what is the use of gold and silver in the wasteland? The white lion is very profitable, and will never exchange people for money."

   Colonel Bode was speechless again. He gritted his teeth and warned Winters: "The White Lion and the Red River are more dangerous than the other Heard tribes combined."

  "I know, of course I know. It's feeding the lions." Winter said: "But swapping the veterans back will make us stronger. After all, it's my survival that matters."

Colonel    asked: "What about after the exchange? Continue to let them fight for you?"

"Yes, I did think so at first." Winters sighed: "But after seeing you, I realized that they are also real people, with families and relatives. They are not puppets, weapons, and more. Not my tool. So...that's it."

Winters made up his mind and said to the colonel with a smile: "Go and stay free. If you want to stay, you can continue to serve as a soldier for me; if you are disabled, I will give them land; if you want to go home, I will pay them a toll. How is it? Are you satisfied?"

   "What am I dissatisfied with?" Colonel Bird snorted.

He used his only right arm to tidy up his appearance, got up, and raised his hand to salute Winters solemnly: "If you can do this, I will pay tribute to all the Palatine veterans and my subordinates who are living in the wasteland and cannot return home. Thank you!"

   Winters accepted the gift and raised his hand in return.

   Hearing now, the big stone in Senior Mason's heart just fell to the ground. After understanding Colonel Broad's motives to a certain extent, the senior's sense of unease eased a little.

   But then, his spirit tightened again.

   Because the senior heard the colonel say to Winters, "I'm going to ask you for something."

   "What do you want? Give what you want." Winters first agreed, and then hurriedly declared: "I don't want money, the finances are tight."

   "I want an official position."

   "What official position?"

   "The highest official position." Colonel Bode sneered: "Which is the highest official, just give it to me."

   The atmosphere suddenly turned cold, and Mason subconsciously shrank his neck. He is mild-mannered and does not like to fight, and the last thing he wants to see is a struggle for power and internal rivalry.

   "You don't have to." Winters blinked.

   "No need?" Colonel Bode pretended to be confused: "I'm a dignified colonel, what's wrong with wanting a high-ranking official?"

   "There is no need to think about the future for the few of us. Since we have embarked on this path, we voluntarily take the risk of not being able to escape."

   The air was no longer frighteningly cold, but the meeting room was still quiet.

"Are you naive or brave? This is no longer a petty fight, this is a whole county." Colonel Bode sighed deeply: "The day the sword fell, did you little guys stand up? Use me as a shield. , hand me over when the mountains and rivers are exhausted, maybe you guys can be replaced by school officials? Isn't it great?"

   "You are too pessimistic." Winters recommended his backup plan with a smile: "It's a big deal, why don't you go to Veneta with us, anyway, you don't have one more partner in business."

   Colonel Bode's anger came up again: "Silly boy, did you think Veneta would protect you that day?"

   "Then flee overseas and go west." Winters drew a circle in the air: "I heard that if you keep going west, you can reach the Far East."

   Colonel Bode propped up the table and couldn't say a word for a long time.

   "The official position is nothing more than a seal, can't I engrave one for you?" Winters explained sincerely: "It's your request - the biggest official position, this is a bit..."

   "You said it was a seal." Colonel Bode blew his beard and stared, "You're stingy even with a seal?"

   "My biggest official position here is field marshal." Winters asked tentatively, "Then I will engrave a marshal's seal for you?"

   Colonel's breathing stopped for at least a beat. Senior Mason stared at his knees, struggling to hold back a laugh.

  Bode's chest was stuffy, and he said with difficulty: "Thousands of people, there is no horseshoe-sized territory, and there is already a marshal? Does it still have to be a legion commander?"

   "All of them. In terms of weaving, they take up space." Winters asked with a smile: "Or...you pick one you like?"

   "Forget it, forget it." Colonel Bode blushed and tried to calm his breath: "I am old and thin-skinned, and I can't afford to lose this person."

   In the eyes of Senior Mason, the colonel's posture and expression became natural during the chat and laugh, and the previous sense of alienation from bystanders and outsiders gradually dissipated.

   "Let's get down to business." Senior Mason guided the topic to formal affairs, he smiled wryly and said, "Send us an official document from Shovel Harbor."

   Hearing the port of Shovel, Winters's spirit suddenly concentrated, his eyebrows wrinkled unconsciously: "What?"

   "Mayor Portar said that the militia team has been recruited, but they are in urgent need of food and weapons. I hope we can give them some money."

   "Potar? Do you care if I want weapons and food?" Winters rubbed the handle of the knife and laughed, "I have a cracking technique, does he want it?"

   "Then I answer him like this?" Senior Mason asked with a smile.

   "Tell him to guard the east bank of the Glory River, and if there is an enemy situation, light the beacon, and the reinforcements will naturally go." Winters sneered: "In my opinion, he probably doesn't want us to go there!"

   "Okay." Senior Mason immediately started drafting a reply.

   Seeing that Colonel Bode did not speak, Winters explained to the colonel: "It's not that I don't help, it's that... Portal, he's not at ease."

   Colonel Bode listened quietly.

   Winters got out of his chair, fetched a map, spread it on the table, and pulled the colonel to stand nearby to study.

"The river bank in Tiefeng County is close to 80 kilometers, and the river bank in Tiefeng County is more than 100 kilometers." As for the terrain of Tiefeng County, Winters knew it at his fingertips: "Only in Upper Tiefeng County, the river bank that needs to be defended is not yet available. To twenty kilometers. The widest river, the quickest current, and the easiest position to defend."

   "What lake is this?"

   "Shovel Lake."

   "The water is dry in winter. Is the lake actually as big as it is drawn on the map?"

   "It's bigger than this, this is an old map."

   Colonel Bode rubbed his beard and asked, "Since it's a port, there must be ships. Why not requisition it?"

   "It's all been detained by the **** mayor." Winters' brows became tighter and tighter: "Before, Portal has been hoarding food, soliciting refugees, and disobeying Gervodin's instructions.

   On ordnance, it’s hard to say. In terms of food, I am afraid he is more abundant than me. For the sake of keeping the town peaceful, I didn't touch him. "

   "But this bastard." Winters sneered: "But it's getting more and more dishonest."

Colonel Bird leaned over to look at the map and muttered to himself: "There's a university question at the seam of the map - this is what John Jesska said, I've never seen a better homework on the map than him, it's a pity ."

   Winters thought: "Do you know where Lieutenant Colonel Jesska is?"

"I don't even know if he's alive or dead." Colonel Bode shook his head with a wry smile, and the colonel's fingertips crossed the border between Vigne County and Iron Peak County: "The seam of this map—the border between the two counties. The shoreline, have you considered it?"

   "I thought about it, there are mountains and forests over there."

   "The mountains and forests can also walk."

   "But Gervodan can't send troops." Winters is helpless: "Otherwise, we and the Legion will have to fight first before the Hurds come. We can only make the militias in Shovel Harbor be more vigilant."

   Colonel Bode said nothing, sat back in his chair heavily, and asked Winters with a smile, "I heard you discuss whether to report to Lin County before, did you report it?"

   "Informed." Winters replied with a bit of bitterness: "But I didn't say the source of the intelligence. The Legion ignored me and didn't give me a reply. I guess I don't believe it."

   "I have an idea." Colonel Bode's smile became deeper and deeper: "What if... the source of the intelligence is me?"

  Winters sat up straight, and after a moment of hesitation, he smiled: "Then we have to make up a good story."

"Do you still need to make up? Let's just say that I escaped from the Teltown Department and brought back important information that the Teltown people are gathering looters?" Colonel Bode laughed: "Just right, let me I am beautiful."

"That…"

   "I'm going to Vigne and White Mountain myself," Colonel Bode said naturally.

   Even Senior Mason, who was drafting a reply, stood up suddenly, and Winters even grabbed the Colonel's hand: "Then it's your job."

   "It's a small matter, and it's a big deal to deal with the Hurds." Colonel Bode waved his hand and asked, "Is the chief officer of White Mountain County still Gaisa Adonis?"

   Winters was pleasantly surprised: "You know that bald head?"

"I'm one level higher than him. I took him with me when he entered the academy." Colonel Bode sighed and said sadly: "Gisa was seriously injured and saved his life, so he became like that. Originally Very handsome and handsome man, it's a pity."

"It turns out that the bald head is true." Winters thought to himself, and he showed 12 points of humility and begged the colonel: "Can you go to White Mountain County first? I would like to ask you to help lead the needle..."

  …

   At noon that day, Second Lieutenant Worthington, from White Mountain County and currently serving in prison in Gervodan, was freed.

   Colonel Bird and Worthington had a few separate conversations.

   Hearing that the one-armed colonel in front of him crossed a hundred kilometers of no-man’s land alone and escaped from the wasteland to Paratu after hardships and dangers, Lieutenant Worthington was moved to tears, and his heart was filled with endless respect.

   Further learning that Colonel Broad was still returning with important military information, Worthington immediately wanted to return to White Mountain County.

   Winters selected a male stallion and a female stallion from the looted herd as gifts for Lieutenant Worthington to bring back to White Mountain County.

"Please bring a word to Colonel Geisa." Winters said sincerely to Senior Worthington: "Adam and Eve only had one man and one girl back then, and they did not give birth to so many people today. Colonel Geisa please wait patiently. , sooner or later a pair of horses can become a group of horses again."

   "You better tell the colonel yourself." Lieutenant Worthington looked complicated: "I'm afraid the colonel will beat me."

   Colonel Bode, who had returned from the moor, only stopped briefly in Gervoudan before embarking on the trek again.

  …

   Winters is busy with another thing - building a city.

   To be precise, it is the expansion of Revodan.

   Unlike ordinary farms, Juntun Village has no self-defense ability after the soldiers are recruited away.

  Winters simply issued the [Fortified Wall and Clearing the Wilderness Order] to evacuate all the family members of the twelve military villages to Revodan, so that the soldiers could fight with peace of mind.

  Gevodan was originally small, and with the addition of military dependents and civilians who came to take refuge, it immediately became very crowded.

   Fortunately, the weather is getting cooler now, otherwise there might be a big epidemic.

   And Winters and Old Priskin agreed that in the future, there will be more civilians pouring into Gervodan - the villages and towns in Iron Peak County have no walls, and facing Heard cavalry is meat on the chopping block.

   Winters simply decided to build a new city, a new city that could accommodate all the refugees.

   Old Priskin proposed to expand the city on the basis of the original city walls, while Winters advocated the construction of a new city south of the St. George River.

The reason given by    Winters is that "building the city wall with its back against the river bank can reduce the amount of engineering as much as possible."

   There is a good reason for this, and Priskin Sr. has no objection.

   So Winters was busy with civil engineering when the wildfire in Tertown was about to burn his hair.

  The new town located on the south bank of the St. George River is not so much a "city" as it is a "fort".

  Because it is essentially a half-circle of city walls and ditches backed by the river bank, and there are no living facilities inside, but the fortifications are very poorly built - after all, the barbarians are coming.

   There is another interesting point: according to Winters' method of dividing the upper, middle and lower iron peaks, the old Gervoudan urban area is completely located on the north bank of the St. George River, so there is no doubt that Gervoudan belongs to the upper iron peaks.

   But the new city was built on the south bank of the St. George River, which means that Gervoudan stepped back to Zhongtiefeng County with one foot, like a child straddling the threshold.

   Meeting in the morning, sending off Colonel Bode and Lieutenant Worthington at noon, and supervising the construction in the afternoon, and it was not until late at night that Winters dragged his exhausted body back to the apartment.

   Without taking off his clothes, he fell asleep on the bed.

   Just when Winters lost consciousness, about 40 kilometers downstream of Shovel Harbor—that is, at the junction of Vigne County and Iron Peak County, at the seam of the map, the Hurds released their sheepskin rafts in the dark.

  The people took advantage of the night to cross what Winters called "the easiest position to defend."

   [Sorry for being late]

   [Thank you for your concern, I hope everyone can be healthy and don't get sick]

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

   (end of this chapter)