Iron Powder and Spellcasters

  Chapter 341 The Old Man and Dussack

  Looking back on his childhood, old Vogt considered himself lucky. Because his mother gave birth to eight children in total, and he was the only one who survived to adulthood.

   But unfortunately, Vogt also had a father who was a thief.

  The occupational risk of a thief is very high. Once caught, he will be beaten, or lose his right hand.

  The income of stealing is also not proportional to the risk. After all, Palato is not the prosperous and prosperous Veneta. In the country of galloping horses, there are almost no thieves who can only rely on stealing to support their families.

   Therefore, Vogt's father earned bread mainly by doing odd jobs, and only when there were many occasions such as markets, celebrations, and worship did he have the opportunity to engage in side jobs.

  There are low seasons and high seasons for odd jobs. During peak seasons—such as spring ploughing and autumn harvesting—Vogt's father was always hired last, and employers had no choice but to take him in. In the off-season, Vogt's father was always the first to fire, because just by looking at his wooden prosthesis, people knew what crime he had committed.

   For Vogt's father, the loss of a hand meant he would never be accepted by the public again. Even passers-by would hold their purses and swords tightly when they saw him approaching.

   So Vogt's family fell into an endless cycle of "stealing due to poverty, poverty due to stealing", and could never escape.

  In old Vogt's memory, his childhood was when he followed his parents to and fro from town to town. He was busy with farmers going to the countryside to find work, and returned to town to do odd jobs in winter.

   And, of course, stealing.

   Born in such a family, being a thief is a matter of course.

   Vogt was sent by his father to steal things at the age of eight—the little ones were more nimble, less conspicuous, and had no serious consequences if caught.

   Stealing until the age of sixteen, Vogt dared not continue. Because he has grown a beard, Adam's apple, is already a young man.

   When an adult is caught stealing, it is not as simple as a few words or a few slaps. Every time he saw his father's prosthetic right hand, the young Vogt felt terrified from the bottom of his heart.

   So one dead night, Voigt said goodbye to his mother, fled from his father's grasp, and ran to a town where no one knew him, wanting to start over.

   Interesting to say, Vogt has never missed a hand from a thief to an adult. His ability is not comparable to that of his half-way monk father. He is a very powerful third-rate thief, so powerful that he can live well by stealing alone.

   Vogt, who was going to reform himself and be innocent, found that he couldn't even make a living.

  Because there is no skill, Vogt can only live by hard work.

   Digging clay, burning kilns, working like cattle from morning till night, but the wages earned can only be used for food and clothing.

Just when Vogt felt that he couldn't take it any longer, his life ushered in the first light. The potter who took in Vogt as a small worker invited him to his home, and expressed his desire to recruit him. be a son-in-law.

The obvious reason for    is that "after repeated investigations, it is determined that he is a reliable and honest young man".

   The actual reason was that the potter's only daughter had long made a secret promise to Vogt, and the old widower had to agree.

  It is difficult to infer what kind of superior appearance he has in his early twenties through the appearance of old Vogt today. We can only tentatively think that Vogt in his youth was more in line with the aesthetics of the time.

   In this way, Vogt got married, had a virtuous and lovely wife, and a father-in-law who treated him very well. In the future, he could inherit a small pottery workshop. He believes that there is no luckier and happier person in the world than himself.

   Then, the war started.

  To this day, Vogt remembers it very clearly: that year was the first severe drought in spring and summer, then heavy snow in autumn and winter, and then "Que Yehan" led an unprecedented army of barbarians into Palatu.

   People were saying in horror, "Heard barbarians come this time, I'm afraid they don't plan to go again".

  The barbarians fought against the Platos, the republicans of the Palatos fought against the royalists of Plato, and Vogt could not tell who was who.

   At that time, he was devastated by another incident - the war destroyed his father-in-law's pottery workshop, and his father-in-law went bankrupt and owed a deposit.

   Vogt was running around trying to borrow money. His father-in-law owed a small deposit, but no one was willing to lend him. There is a war going on outside, and everyone is holding their wallets tightly and not letting go.

   Vogt stood in the ruins of the pottery workshop all night and decided to take the risk.

  …

  …

   "Then what?" Pierre asked with a frown, "You didn't steal? Are you caught?"

   "It's done." The old man lowered his head and fiddled with the campfire: "Although I hadn't done that for many years at that time, my ability was not completely unfamiliar."

   "That?" Pierre coughed: "Where is your pottery workshop?"

  The old man pretended to be relaxed: "No, even the land was sold by the debt collectors."

   "Where are you then?"

   "I got caught."

   "Didn't you say you stole it?"

   "I got the money. But I got caught too."

  Pierre was a little annoyed: "So what is 'done'?"

  The old man was silent for a while, then explained: "I was arrested because someone in Xiaolu City accused me of stealing, and it has nothing to do with my 'work'."

   "I don't understand." Pierre was completely confused.

   "Because." The old man raised his head and said plainly, "My work is done in Jackdaw Town."

  Pierre didn't understand at first: "You mean...you mean they framed you?"

  The old man grinned: "It can't be called 'framed', because I deserve it."

"what happened."

"It's nothing complicated. I went to Jackdaw Town and got a sum of money that could pay off the debt. The day after I paid the money back to the creditor, someone found the mayor and said that the house had been burglarized and lost a piece of it. A sum of money. The amount is not much, not much, just as much as my family owes.”

  Pierre narrowed his eyes: "Black eats black?"

   "Who knows?" The old man scooped up another cup of hot soup and handed it to Pierre: "Drink some more... Anyway, the mayor asked me where the money for the debt came from, I can't tell."

  Pierre took the cup and held it in his hand.

"As luck would have it, another 'old acquaintance' exposed my identity. So, everyone knows - I'm a thief's son. A thief's son is a thief, what could be simpler?" The old man smiled nonchalantly: "But he was right, I am indeed a thief."

   "You didn't plead?"

   "There was a war at that time, and the sentence was very heavy. If you don't plead guilty, you will die. If you plead guilty, you don't have to die."

   "You pleaded guilty?"

   "Yes, I admit it." The old man repeated: "They are right, I am indeed a sinner."

  The two around the campfire were silent for a while.

   "Aren't you lying to me?" Pierre suddenly laughed: "Where did you hear the story?"

   The old man also laughed: "I wish I was lying to you."

   Another moment of silence.

   "And then what?" asked Pierre.

   "Then?" The old man stood up and patted the ashes on his body: "Then I was sentenced to hard labor and conscripted into the army. At that time, the army needed people to work."

   "Have you been a soldier?"

   "I have never taken a weapon, I am a common man, chopping down trees, driving cars, and moving things."

   "Oh." Pierre was a little disappointed. He took a sip of the hot soup from the cup and asked casually, "What about your wife and your father-in-law?"

   "They're all dead." The old man exhaled: "Father-in-law committed suicide with a rope, and his daughter-in-law died of illness."

  Pierre was silent for a long time, then said hoarsely: "If I were you, I would definitely kill all those who framed me."

   "You are Dussack, and you have the ability." The old man laughed wryly and laughed at himself: "What about me? I'm just a common man, and I can be considered a thief at best.

  Pierre hummed disdainfully.

"When I get home." The old man broke off branches one by one to add firewood to the campfire, and said ramble: "I found that my home was gone, and my daughter was gone, so I started looking for my daughter again. Day by day, I don't know how it passed in a daze..."

   "Wait." Pierre coughed sharply: "You still have a daughter?"

"Yes, I have."

"Where is she?"

   "Where?" The old man was inexplicable: "Where else can I be?"

   Pierre suddenly appeared: "Xiaolu City? Your daughter is in Xiaolu City? That's why you are in Xiaolu City?"

"Yes."

   "Then what about you?" Pierre couldn't bear to ask the second half of the sentence - "Then why are you still in jail for so long? Why didn't she come to redeem you?"

Seeing Pierre's doubts, the old man shook his head: "My daughter is married, has children, and is doing well. She doesn't know I'm still alive. Why should I tell her? Let her pay me? Then What? Then there is a thief father? In fact, if I can stand by and take a look, I have nothing to be dissatisfied with..."

  Pierre looked at the fire and let out a long sigh. He doesn't have children yet, so he doesn't know what it's like to be a father, but he thinks of his dad.

   "That what." The old man scratched his hair: "Thank you for getting me out."

  Pierre didn't look up: "Without your care, I would have died in prison."

   "Just talking about me. We've been in the same nest for so long, and I don't know why you were put in jail. I asked you before, but you didn't tell me, can you tell me now?"

  Pierre sipped the hot soup: "My affairs are not as twisty as yours."

  …

  …

  The reason why Winters sent Pierre to look for [Berrian], [Girard] and others was because only Pierre could do it.

  Others either lacked the ability to make individual decisions—for example, Tamas, Bart Shalling, etc. at that time;

  Pierre thought so too.

   Knowing that the Hurd raiders had invaded the territory of Palatu, the "overreacted" Palatu Army directly issued a mobilization order to all reserve Dussacs.

  The Dussacks who were temporarily recruited were organized into a separate cavalry corps, which was under the command of the expeditionary army headquarters.

   After the **** night in the castles of the kings, the expedition force turned into a military government. Of course, the military government, which is in desperate need of combat power, cannot let the Dussacks go home, and the [First Reserve Cavalry Corps] is logically included in the battle sequence of the Third Republic.

  After the winter, the fighting was suspended. In order to reduce the logistical pressure, the Palatu military government divided its troops into various towns in the territory for food and winter.

   Doing so has another benefit: it can deter potential rebels and increase the junta's internal control.

  Since there are advantages, there are also disadvantages. For example, dispersing for the winter is to disperse the troops. If the red rose suddenly comes over...

   Another example: Jiangbei Province has a large group of disgruntled Dussack veterans.

   Veterans love to whine, and whining is the privilege of veterans. The veterans complained about the food, the weather, the stupid centurion, and the bad boots, as if nothing in the world would satisfy them.

   And the Dussack veterans were especially grumbling.

  Because of the special system of lifetime service, most of the temporarily recruited Dussacks are veterans who have served seven years of active duty. Many of them already have a lot of beards, and some even have grandchildren.

When    recruited them, he said that he wanted them to fight the barbarians of Hurd, and they could go home after they were killed.

   So the Dussacks, regardless of age, willing or unwilling, rode on war horses and carried dry food on their backs to gather at the field camp.

The results of it?

   The barbarian Hurd was beaten away, and he wanted the Dussacks to deal with their own people? How to say good is different?

  The Dussacks, loyal to the Republic of Palato, have not done dirty work for many years.

  The younger generation born in Palato doesn't even know the true meaning of [the emperor's whip], and only the older generation, Dussac, still has the memory of wielding a saber and slashing at the "crop man".

   Seeing that it was winter, the military government had no sign of lifting the draft order. The Dussacks were grumbling, angry, feeling betrayed, and homesick.

  The daring Dussac became a deserter, and the Dussacs who dared not be deserters had to drink alcohol every day to drown their sorrows.

  The army did not supply wine, and the Dussacks used armbands, belts, and silver stirrups to exchange for merchants, and even robbed them.

  The taverns, hotels, and crossroads in Jiangbei Province are full of drunken Dussacs who want to fight.

   In this case, the identities of Pierre and Wahica are almost seamless—because they are Dussacks in the first place.

   After leaving Tiefeng County, Pierre and Wahika detoured from the no-man's land in the west, crossed the Jinliu River with the assistance of the Chihe Department, crossed the river and then entered Jiangbei Province.

  The area of ​​Jiangbei province is close to that of the newly reclaimed land province. Finding a small group of people on a land of more than 200,000 square kilometers is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

   But Pierre has a way. Every time he went to a city or a village, Pierre always went to the tavern first to inquire about news. When encountering Dussac who is borrowing wine to relieve his worries, he invites him to have a drink.

  Dussack is an outlier among the Paratus, their hairstyles, accessories, and clothing are all different from the latter.

   When two Dussacs meet, there is a natural sense of intimacy. Coupled with the uninterrupted refills of spirits, the Dussacs who sat with Pierre soon began to wipe their tears, hug their shoulders, and call themselves brothers, eager to tell Pierre everything they knew.

When passing through Oakwood Town, he heard the rumor of "a hoof trimmer with exceptional cooking skills" from a Dussac. Following the rumor, he learned of the "hoof trimmer" from another Dussac. .

   Although it was only after meeting that he found out that the other party was not Bellion, but unexpectedly learned that the hoof trimmer had worked with a "certain young but very powerful" blacksmith before, and the hoof trimmer also learned the cooking skills from the latter.

  The hard work paid off, Pierre followed the vine to find one station after another, and finally succeeded in meeting with Berrian.

  The task that Winters gave Pierre was just to "find someone and do your best". Although Berian was not under strict supervision, it was not something that Pierre and Vashica could solve.

  So after discussing with Wahika, it was decided that Wahika would return to Iron Peak County to deliver the letter, and Pierre stayed in Jiangbei province to wait for reinforcements.

   Actually Pierre has another idea - he wants to find Gerard Mitchell.

   It was around this time that Pierre was caught and thrown into Stone Mountain Prison.

  …

  …

   The old man smiled and said, "I knew you were not small."

   "That's why you take care of me, right?" Pierre half-smiled.

   "That's right." The old man simply admitted: "The first time I saw you...I thought you might have been sent by the Lord to save me."

   "Anyway, thank you."

  The old man changed the subject: "How did you get caught? You haven't said it yet! Did someone set up a card?"

Pierre snorted coldly: "Sheka? When I met the policemen on patrol, my companions and I could throw them away with a whip, and they couldn't catch up. They probably thought it was two drunken Dousas. Grab it."

"That…"

"Things went well... I ordered all the Dussac wines in the tavern." Pierre's cheeks twitched: "For some reason, more and more people came. They got drunk and started fighting, dancing, and drinking. Crazy."

"and then?"

   "Then someone suggested burning the tavern."

  “…”

   "The tavern owner was so frightened that he closed the door, and the gendarmerie arrested us all as soon as they arrived."

   [Last week's account is paid off]

   [This chapter may have a few typos, because it's too late, my brain is not easy to use, sorry (covering face). If possible, please feel free to point it out and change it tomorrow]

   [Thank you for your collection, reading, subscription, recommendation ticket, monthly ticket, reward and comment, thank you all]

   (end of this chapter)