109 Waiting for Spring

"My lord, this is the true work of Lord Rose. However, this letter only said that we should cooperate with adults and manage the factory under the wartime economic system, and did not say that we must do it now. The matter of the mine is very complicated, and it takes a certain amount of time to hand over, so I wonder if you can give some grace? Are we ready too? ”

Hardwick wanted to drag on and go to the event again. But how could Gastens let him get his wish. Prince Eliot's tiger skin, he doesn't know when he can use it, so it's only right to eat the mine quickly.

"No need, I've been a miner, I know what's going on with mining, I'm going to hand over now, you only have the obligation to cooperate, and you don't have the right to delay and resist, understand?"

With Gastens speaking, the soldiers behind him raised their guns in unison, as if to cheer him on. When Hardwick saw this, his brow furrowed a few times, and he finally remembered that the man in front of him had almost disemboweled the son of the big landowner Theo Matthias, just to prove the authenticity of the documents. The courage he had managed to muster, in front of the rumors and the soldier in front of him, disappeared without a trace.

"Let's go, follow me in!"

Seeing that he was no longer talking, Gastens stretched out his hand to push him away and led his soldiers into the mine. The workers blocking the gate of the mine looked at him, their eyes full of curiosity and joy, even more than hostility. They had all heard of the things that Gastens had done in the province of Enspan, and they were envious. Now that the legendary savior of workers and serfs has come to the Luoshan Iron Mine, will it also bring some changes to their black life?

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Gastens did not disappoint them. For the next five days, he and the four company commanders brought to the mine, Ivan and Zinke, as well as the newcomer Haba Nye and the first 22 death squad captain Calaiber Warren, entered the mine to mine, work together, eat together, and rest with the workers. At first, the workers didn't believe him, thinking he was acting like he was doing it, and waited for him to work for three or five minutes before leaving the mine. But Gastens really started to dig hard. Unlike the pyroxene mine in Johor Bahru, the Loksan Iron Mine is an open-pit mine. Over the past decade or so, mining has created a huge pit in the mining area. Workers and horse-drawn wagons, as well as small steam railcars, descended from the cantilevers around the pit to the bottom of the pit, bringing truckloads of iron ore from the bottom. Mining here is almost purely manual labor, and after a huge steam pendulum crushes large chunks of ore, the miners have to beat the ore to the right size, load it onto trucks, and send it out of the pit. Although the whole process of work is not dangerous to dig pyroxene in the ground, it is very tiring. Gastens relied on his years of accumulation of serfs, workers and soldiers, and worked steadily for three days, and by the third day, his output had caught up with the more productive workers. And the company commanders he brought over, as well as the soldiers who followed him later, worked harder than him. And the miners of the Los Angeles Iron Mine also accepted him from their hearts because of Gastens for these five days of labor.

After that, Gastens drove out the mine's leader, Nikola Hardwick, and his cronies, leaving behind a relatively cooperative middle management, which, together with Caleb Warren, brought with him, formed a new management of the plant. After that, he gathered the workers and began to announce his new policy.

"Fellow miners, during this time, you should have heard me say that I have dug pyroxene in the Johor Bahru mine opposite, and I have also encountered the magic surge, and I have seen dead miners with my own eyes. At that time, the mine did not say anything about compensating the miners, as if a person died and died, and it was not worth anything. Now that I have an opportunity to serve you, I don't want that to happen. What I did in the Plains of Elena, you've probably heard of it. Slave workers in the mine, I will organize three production charges, set the total amount of ore produced in the whole mine, and the number of tasks of each group, and when it is completed, you will no longer be slaves. I'm at the Elena factory and I've done that. So, you can trust me that I can do the same here. ”

Halfway through Gastens's speech, the slave miners below were already talking, and by the time he had finished, everyone was already cheering, and the man on the stage was working with them, eating the same meal, living in a shack, and without a shelf. At the same time, he also fulfilled his promise in the Plains of Elena. Now, the adults have finally come to the mines, and they have finally put in front of them the opportunity to get rid of slavery. And all they have to do is mine.

The cheers of the workers almost drowned out the sound of Gastens. He waited a while before he began to talk about the policy towards the other workers.

"To the worker brothers who are not slaves, I will give you higher wages, more holidays, and more importantly, all the income from the mine, I will announce to everyone, and I will never take a penny into my own pocket. This mine, during the period of time I managed, will not be your exploiter, but a platform for you to earn a better life for yourself through labor, understand? ”

Gastens offered the workers less obvious conditions than they did to the slaves. But even so, it was a good treatment that the workers had never heard of, and they began to cheer with the slave workers, looking forward to the future of the Los Angeles iron ore mine under the management of Gastens .

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After another week in Los Angeles, where he led the slave workers into three production charges, granting them a free status, Gastens completely consolidated his leadership position in the Los Angeles Iron Mine. After that, Gastens took Calaiber Warren to learn mine management. Before leaving Los Angeles, he also left a company of soldiers with Caleb Warren as a last resort. After that, he returned to the small town of Elena to recuperate, took care of some factories and the serfs of the peasants after he was freed, took Ivan, Zinke, and Eddie Warren, and three companies of soldiers, and went straight to the Johor Bahru pyroxene mine to visit his old employer, the Brown family, who were once high up and could decide his life and death.

"I really didn't expect that half a year ago, you were an inconspicuous serf in my mine, but now, you have become my guest of honor, Garstens Warren, and honestly, you are the most powerful person I have ever met."

At the Brown family's main home, Gastens met Baviser Brown, his former mine manager and third son of the old Baron Brown of the Brown family. Knowing that Gastens was not a good person, the old Brown drum did not come forward, so Bavishi Brown, who had a relationship with Gastens, came out to receive him.

"Mine Master, you have praised it, I am just lucky, and I also met the wise Royal Highness the Prince, so I have my current position. I am not here this time for myself, but for His Royal Highness. ”

Gastens now had no psychological burden in front of Barwich Brown, and now that he had experienced the wind and waves, a small baron, a combination of a feudal landlord and a new capitalist, was no longer enough to stop his plans, he took a sip of black leaf tea and offered his own terms.

"As you know, Mine Master, we are now producing weapons for Prince Eliot, and the production of weapons, the operation of factories, and the lives of the townspeople are inseparable from pyroxene. We've been buying from you before, and that's great, but sometimes it doesn't meet our needs. Just like recently, the rifles we produce, the logistics department said that we would pay together in the spring, and if we didn't give us money, we wouldn't have the money to buy pyroxene. On such a cold day, there is no money to buy pyroxene, but it will really freeze to death. At the same time, I don't think it's too kind to give you a white slip, and I hope you can understand our difficulties and cooperate with the current situation, and hand over the three mines at the end of the Johor Bahru vein, near the Elena Plain, to us for management. When the war is over, we will definitely pay it back with both hands, and we will give you absolutely generous compensation, what do you think? ”

I don't think it's good!

Barwich Brown was guilty of slander, but he knew he had no right to refuse. He smiled a little awkwardly and asked the question he had been concerned about.

"I've heard that you brought troops over this time, but really?"

"That is, you also know that there is a war now, and some rogues and deserters are making trouble everywhere, and I brought these people for the sake of safety, and I will not use them against my own people like you unless I have to."

Fart!

Bavishi Brown scolded even more in his heart, these soldiers were obviously coming at him. But he didn't dare to break it. What this little serf did in front of him in the Luoshan Iron Mine has been spread here. Ask yourself, he, Buffy Brown, is sure not to mingle with those slaves and dregs. Gastens can quickly control the Los Angeles Iron Mine, and naturally he can also quickly control his Xinshan pyroxene mine, how can their Brown family, a small local family, fight such a perverted enemy?

"Lord Garstens", carelessly, Bawishi Brown even used an honorific title, "I have no opinion on your takeover of the Goddess Mine, I hope to help the country's war effort." ”

Barwich Brown, who rarely spoke so much of the time, said something awkward, but Gastens didn't mind it. Seeing that Ba Weishi agreed, he directly dragged him to the goddess mining area, took over the three mines in front of him, and then let the somewhat depressed mine manager leave.

"Head, are we offending too many people like this?"

Ivan followed Gastens, a little unsure, although he had been a felon and an outlaw, but sometimes, he felt that his head was the real devil.

"If you're afraid of offending people, don't make a revolution."

Gastens blocked Ivan back with a word, and after that, he easily achieved control of the Goddess Mine of the Johor Bahru Pyroxene Mine according to the previous method in Luoshan. However, contrary to the resounding name, this mining area has actually reached the end of mining, and the grade and quantity of pyroxene produced are not much, although it is enough to use, but the potential is worrying.

Gastens naturally didn't have the heart to look at the potential at this time, he had to get things done around Elena before he could have the confidence to do other things. He left Eddie Warren at the Goddess Mine in the Johor Bahru Pyroxene Mine, and returned to Elena Town with Ivan and Zink.

After securing the two mining sites and setting up outposts and observation posts around the Elena Plains, it was mid-February, and the breath of deep winter had faded with the passage of time, and although the snow was still stubborn, the daily temperature had begun to rise slowly. All signs are showing that the spring of the new year is quietly coming. But in the eyes of most people in this world, the breath of spring means that in addition to new life, there are more deaths.

Luna has been with Elena for more than two weeks, and her knowledge of the land is gradually deepening. Although the land was still owned by the landlords, the serfs had become independent peasants. The grain they grow, according to the rules specified by Gastens, was to be kept for their own use, except for a certain share of the rent. This gives them a great enthusiasm for production. Although it is still early for spring sowing, some new farmers who can't bear the loneliness have begun to take the initiative to repair their farm tools and check the land, hoping to grow more food for themselves in the new year.

In addition to the peasants, the workers also have a different face than other places. Gastens would report on all the major events in the factory with the workers, and sometimes discuss them. The income from the sale of rifles to the factory, every penny, almost all the workers knew. At the same time, they also enjoy higher wages and more vacations, and the factory has given more intimate choices in terms of safety facilities. These actions have brought the workers' recognition of Gastens to an unprecedented peak.

“…… So, what kind of person is he? ”

During the after-dinner break, Luna used to ask Daisy a lot about Gastens and most of the time, Daisy would give her answers. Sometimes, Daisy is silent. Gradually, Luna gets to know Gastens better, but as she gets to know her, so does her curiosity about Gastens.

“…… It's hard to say", Daisy looked up at the pyroxene chandelier on the roof, "I still don't know how he came from a little serf to the person he is now. Either way, one thing I can be sure of is that Gastens is a man of faith. ”

"Faith...... Is it? ”

Luna chewed on the word, thinking of the Mage Tower again, perhaps for fear of embarrassment, or if she really didn't want to see her again. Neither her husband, Joe McFabrie, nor the defunct Mage Tower, had sought out her. This fact made her happy at first, but it soon made her feel lonely. The atmosphere in the Plains of Elena is lively and welcoming, with almost everyone having a smile on their faces. But no matter how hard she tried, Luna felt that there was an indescribable gap between herself and these people.

"Yes, faith."

Daisy blinked and looked at Luna, "You're a big shot, what do you believe?" What is your faith? ”

"I ...... I don't know ......."

Luna thought of her life, of the countless days and nights she had lived for magic, and that she had always believed that only magic could save her, and that she had dreamed countless times of the day when she would become a Magister, no matter how untouchable it might be. But is that what she believes?

"My lord," Melen and Laviel, who were also listening to their conversation, interjected as they sewed their clothes, "before you find your faith." ”

"Oh, yes!"

Hearing the reminder, Luna quickly bowed her head and continued her work. After coming to Elena, she, like everyone else, has to work, work to have something to eat, work to have a place to live, and work to be valuable. However, unlike those people's heartfelt enthusiasm, Luna's heart is still full of doubts.

Where is my future?