Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 367 Trade embargo

  Although Hornfort [Hornford] is the capital of the Monta Republic, Steel Fort [Solingen] is the most prosperous city in the Land of the Mountains.

   Benefiting from the unique mineral resources and skilled craftsmen who settled here, Steel Castle was a famous blacksmith town in the Monta Empire for many years - but only in Monta.

   Trapped in the mountains, no matter how good the ironware of the steel castle is, it cannot be shipped out.

   Even if it can be shipped out, the lords and municipalities outside are reluctant to buy Monta goods, and they prefer to protect the local subway products that can contribute tax.

   Until thirty years ago, two major events happened.

  The first thing: the completion of the Wupper Canal, the waterway between the Rose River and the Ember River has been opened since then.

   To dig this short canal, it took the Steel Castle Blacksmiths Guild just to raise funds for forty years.

   By the time the first altar of gold coins buried was seen, the leader who initiated the matter had long since passed away, and the ignorant teenagers in the audience had already turned white.

After   , the canal took another fifteen years to build, and it took a total of fifty-five years and three generations.

  The second thing: The Duke of Arlean led his troops into the front of the mountain, and the Sovereign War broke out.

  War is like a madly hungry monster asking for more steel and blood all the time.

  The iron production area in the piedmont area was scorched by the brutal tug-of-war, but the steel fort, which was far away from the disaster, was able to make a fortune.

  Two sovereign wars, eight years before and after the war. By the time the Mad King Richard retired, Steel Castle had become the largest ironware manufacturing center in the Land of Two Mountains.

  After the war, the arms business was no longer good.

   But instead of declining, Fort Steel grew more freely because it was freed from the shackles of the empire.

  The need for iron products is almost inexhaustible for the alliance that is waiting to be rebuilt. Steelcastle blacksmiths no longer rush to make swords and sell iron bars.

  With the reduction of tariffs within the alliance, the bar iron produced by Steel Castle is no longer trapped in the mountains. They were loaded onto ships and flowed down the river, and were exported to republics, empires, and overseas.

The decade of the    Sovereign War was a tragic decade for many ordinary people, but a golden decade for Steel Castle.

   Even twenty years after the war ended, it was twenty years of rapid development for Steelcastle.

  Steel Castle has not only grown from a famous blacksmith town to a steel capital with a reputation in the alliance, but has also grown from a remote valley by the Rose Lake to a transportation hub where commercial roads gather today.

   Therefore, if foreign firms want to do business in the Monta Republic, they will focus their energy on Steel Fort instead of the capital Horn Fort.

  The person in charge of most of the businesses in Steel Fort is actually the general person in charge of the Republic of Monta—the Navarre business is just like that.

  …

  The representative of the Navarre family in Steelcastle is an old gentleman with a Veneta beard named [Carlo Ed].

  The so-called Veneta-style beard means no beard.

  Mr. Ed is tall and slender and unsmiling. If it weren't for his bald jaw and upper lip, and just based on his clothes and temperament, I am afraid that many people would mistake him for a clergyman.

   When Anna came back with a dewy body and sketching, Mr. Ed was talking to Winters about the gold exchange.

"...Although Steel Castle will not be able to eat half a ton of gold, if it is exchanged for Ducats at one time, the price will definitely be forcibly lowered." Mr. Ed dipped his fingertips in water and wrote a number on the table: "Steel Castle's There are guilds behind the goldsmiths, if they find out the truth and join hands to lower the price, the exchange rate will be even lower.”

   Winters gently moussed his bone whistle and nodded thoughtfully. The two wolfhounds leaned obediently beside Winters boots, peeking at him expectantly.

   Also sitting at the small table, there is the expressionless Father Kaman.

   Compared with the neatly groomed old Mr. Ed and Father Carman, Winters is a little sloppy.

  Although Winters was well-dressed - to Anna's credit, he wasn't so lucky with his beard and hair - also to Anna.

  Seeing Ana Navarre returning to the camp, Mr. Ed took the initiative to stand up and greeted: "It's a pleasure to meet you, my lady. Compared with two years ago in Hailan, you are healthier and more energetic now."

   "Mr. Ed, I'm happier to see you look good." Anna smiled in return and put down her drawing board: "However, 'more vitality' and 'healthier' should not be used on ladies."

   "For someone my age, health is more important than anything else."

   "Mr. Ed is right." Winters righteously agreed: "Health is beauty!"

The two people who get along with each other are often difficult to detect each other's changes. Winters can't tell where Anna has changed, but it seems that everything has changed: the tip of the nose and cheeks are more beautiful, the waist line is more attractive, the thighs are tighter, more radiant...

   If you say Ms. Navarre who just arrived in Iron Peak, she is also carrying a little pampered baby fat.

  So after the long and arduous journey, the squeamishness on Anna's body was completely gone, replaced by exuberant vitality, like those idealized and realistic statues of ancient goddesses walking into the world.

   This vibrant beauty makes Winters heartbroken, so as long as Anna uses the "comparative" recently, Winters sings praises without hesitation.

   Except for the skin problem - that's the forbidden area of ​​​​the restricted area, whoever mentions it will die.

   Anna, who had returned from sketching, walked into the tent, took off her sword, washed her face with a few handfuls of water, and wiped it dry. He walked out of the tent again and sat down at the table generously.

   There are now four people at the table: Winters, Kaman, Ed, and Anna.

   Mr. Ed calmly glanced at Winters and then at Anna, and found that the two of them looked natural, without any strangeness or pretence.

   "What's the matter? Mr. Ed?" Winters asked softly. "I'm still waiting for you to go on."

   "It's nothing." Mr. Ed put a smile on his serious face: "I think, maybe only a strange woman can be worthy of a great husband."

   After a short pause, Mr. Ed continued to talk about the exchange of gold bars for gold coins.

  …

  …

   Half a month ago, after recasting the golden sacrificial people into four carts of gold bars, the Tiefeng County embassy was divided into two groups.

   One route was escorted by Lieutenant Colonel Moritz, carrying three-quarters of the gold directly back to Tiefeng County. The Tiefeng County government urgently needs this batch of hard currency to ease the financial crisis

  The other route, led by Winters himself, secretly went north into the Republic of Monta.

  However, Winters, who returned to the "civilized world", was faced with the dilemma that he could not use the money: gold bars could not be used directly, even if someone wanted to collect them, it was too conspicuous and had to be replaced with common gold coins.

   Fortunately, the Navarre Firm also has business in the country of mountains, so that Winters will not be helpless.

Winters first found the branch of the Navarre Trading Company in the border city of Monta Republic [Lucerne], exchanged a small amount of gold bars, and at the same time sent a letter to the headquarters of the trading firm in Steel Castle through the channel of the Navarre Trading Company. Urgent letter.

   Then he took the remaining gold bars and hurried to Steel Castle.

   Then, he waited for Mr. Eddard outside a small village on the outskirts of Steel Castle.

   "All in all." Mr. Ed resumed his stern look: "It is a very uneconomical business practice to exchange all the gold you hold into Ducats, Interprovincial Gold Shields or Monta Gold coins at one time."

   "What's your suggestion then?" Winters asked.

"My suggestion is - mortgage. First use this batch of gold to mortgage the gold coins, and then slowly digest them to maintain a stable exchange ratio. Of course, it is best to bring the gold back to Veneta and recast it into Ducats. Reasonable."

   Winters puzzled: "Pledge gold with gold?"

"Yes. But it is not mortgaged to the goldsmiths, but to other businesses." Mr. Ed said eloquently: "The gold bars are divided into several equal parts and mortgaged to different businesses, so that the Goldsmiths of Steel Castle can be bypassed. Moreover, during the mortgage period, the collateral cannot be used for recasting, and it will not impact the exchange ratio of gold and gold coins in the market.”

  Winters saw Anna nodding lightly to himself, so he stood up reassuringly and thanked the old gentleman: "It's all up to you, Mr. Ed."

   "It's my honor to be able to help." Mr. Ed nodded: "Your Excellency Montagne."

   confirmed how to exchange gold bars for gold coins, and there are a series of more important problems to be solved.

Mr. Ed took out the expedited letter in Anna's handwriting from his arms: "You said in the letter that you hope to be introduced to the decision-making level of Steel Castle. It is not difficult. Mr. Bolso of the Esther family is in Steel Castle. Fort, he is a close friend of Mayor Wupper. I can introduce you to Mr [Bolso da Este] and ask him to introduce you to Mayor [Paul Wupper].”

   In the ears of Veneta people with a little common sense, Da Este is an extremely prominent surname.

  Although Winters doesn't know who "Bolso da Este" is, if there is a "White Eagle" willing to lend a helping hand, it should not be difficult to meet the mayor of Steel Castle.

  [Note: The symbol of the Esther family is the white eagle]

   "As for your other requirement - buying weapons." Mr. Ed frowned slightly: "I'm afraid it will be difficult."

   "What?" Winters didn't seem surprised, and joked: "Does the Blacksmith of Steel Castle make any money?"

Mr. Ed took out another stacked piece of paper from his arms: "The Monta people's behavior is indeed different from ours. Life in the country of mountains is difficult, so the Monta people are more united and loyal. Once the collegiality is passed I will never regret it, never violate it.”

  Winters took the straw paper and unfolded it, and the newly printed ink on the paper still gave off a faint smell.

   A huge seal was stamped directly under the papyrus, and the first sentence on the head was: "The senior representatives of Solingen, who are loved by the only master and free people, jointly voted to approve the following collegiate..."

Mr. Ed said in a deep voice: "Steel Castle City Council has just passed an executive order. It prohibits any individual or guild from selling weapons, ammunition and any resources that may be used in war to the Republic of Palatu. However, this order is only an administrative order. The decree will be debated and voted by the head office before it becomes a formal decree.”

   Winters read the contents of the notice at a glance, and then handed the straw paper to Anna.

   "Steel Castle is about to impose a trade embargo on the Republic of Palatu." Mr. Ed looked stern: "And Steel Castle may be just the beginning."

   [I owe a chapter for the time being, it's too late, sorry]

   [Ideal realism refers to the art style of "pursuing an idealization of realism". The most typical example is the ancient Greek statues, which are all "human", but they are all "ideal appearances that defective humans cannot achieve", which makes the cold marble have both divinity and humanity.

   Inheriting the art style of ancient Greece, the Romans also pursued idealized realism, and even applied this style to humans.

   For example, in the "Statue of Augustus", Octavian was not actually tall, nor strong, or even sickly. But the sculptor sculpted Octavian into a demigod-like burly general, similar to the portraits of later kings and princes]

   [And, the idealistic and realistic art style even influenced the Celestial Dynasty. The most classic example - Buddhist Gandhara style sculpture]

[Alexander's Eastern Expedition established a series of Greek cultural countries in what is now India, and introduced the idealized and realistic artistic style to Indian religion. This artistic style was introduced to the Celestial Dynasty along with Buddhism through the Western Regions. The masterpieces that have been passed down to this day include the Yungang Grottoes in Datong , Dunhuang Grottoes]

   [Civilization is always communicating, learning and growing]

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

   (end of this chapter)