As soon as the beautifully crafted new bonds were introduced, they were enthusiastically sought after by private capital, among which businessmen who had quickly accumulated wealth in industry and commerce were the most enthusiastic, entrusting agents or personally rushing into the Cedar Bank, waving cash cheques to buy a small number of small-denomination bonds directly from the civilians on the spot.

The war bonds with physical collateral are divided into several large categories, such as wool with a face value of 50 gold oma, the header is a string of flower characters of the Customs Union, the border is specially made with a newly invented overprint process for color security, and the painting of Rotterdam, the master carver of the Rotin Academy, and the square stack pattern of hemp rope bundles, which is collectible even if it is not used.

At the bottom of the bonds, there is a printed date and number, and there is a blank space in the lower right corner that was originally used to record the name of the purchaser, but only for large denominations of more than 1,000 gold oma.

The bearer war bonds of the Cedar Bank, faced with the ordinary civilians of Eastwood, soon fell into the hands of well-funded business owners, usually at a premium of one percent, and they did not compete to raise the price as if they had formed an offensive and defensive alliance, and many of the unforeseen civilians soon changed hands on all their share of what they could buy, complacent in order to make a small profit.

With physical goods as collateral, these industrial and commercial nouveau riche sent people directly to the docks to exchange bundles of war bonds for all kinds of cheap booty, wool, timber, iron sand, dried fish, bacon, pine nuts, hazelnuts, rye and other nuts and grains.

Although the Sales Committee had anticipated this, the enthusiasm of the merchants had apparently frightened them, and they had intended to use war bonds to absorb the funds accumulated by the people, rather than just to deal cheaply with the goods that the soldiers in front had exchanged for their blood and lives.

It is obviously impossible to raise prices on the spot, after all, there are so many people staring, so the trick of short-term and short-term is quickly staged in the dock area.

The half-filled barrels, the soaked wood, and the iron sand mixed with sundries, the quality of the trophies carried off the ship in advance in the dock area is still guaranteed, but the cargo ships that meandered on the wide liquor river naturally some people couldn't help but use their hands and feet.

The leading union in the docklands, led by the extremely powerful bigwig Aldrich Triss, had luckily bought enough iron sand from the three North Sea countries to buy the rich ore of Damac, and if it were not for the care of a House friend on the sales committee, it might not have been able to come out on top.

The feast of wealth sharing, everyone has a share, Eastwood City gradually precipitated in the hands of the private and industrial and commercial capital nouveau riche can be quickly released to the market, stirring up the original stagnant situation, forming a strong magnetic effect.

The poor boy became rich overnight is no longer a legend sung by bards, many people can make a small fortune just by queuing up at the bank to buy bonds, because of the tragic losses of last year's rush to buy, ordinary citizens who have become hesitant to invest have lost the opportunity to make a fortune because they are too cautious.

However, behind the carnival-style carving-up feast, Aldrich clearly felt some kind of imminent pressure, and the messenger who went to the city hall to report the victory had not appeared for a few days, so it couldn't be a delay on the way back, right?

Triss's fears were not unfounded, and on the sixth night of the war bond issuance, he was invited to the Baron's mansion by a private letter from His Excellency Federi, a senior senator of the Senate, and Aldrich immediately mounted the dark horse Hayek and rushed all the way to the white oak road in the city.

Luckily, the roads are deserted at night, and with the exception of night walkers who are on the fringes of the law, ordinary citizens who have money to spend time in taverns and brag to their friends will pass the time, so Triss will have nothing to do with galloping.

When he had just reached the junction of White Oak Road, the street lamps on both sides of the straight road were a little dazzling because of the kerosene, and the carriage parked only in front of the private house of Baron Federi was disorderly and disorderly, blocking most of the road.

Aldridge inexplicably sensed a gloomy or melancholy atmosphere, and he sighed softly, causing the dark horse to slow down slightly, and he also calmed down his mood and returned to his usual calm state.

Riding forward gently, he came to the door of the mansion of Baron Federi, and saw an elder among the many butlers who had been waiting for a long time, turned over and dismounted, handed the reins into his hand, nodded slightly in greeting, and then walked briskly, through the lawn in front of the door, and entered the front door of the mansion.

With only twelve candles in the pilasters on all sides, and the great vestibule shrouded in darkness, Tris was led by a waiter through the twenty curtain walls to the depths of the Baron's Mansion, a secret room that was said to be reserved for the great men.

Before he could get closer, Aldrich smelled the strong smell of tobacco, and he couldn't help frowning, he had always had a deep dislike for everything that could be addicted, because they would corrode people's minds, bringing a series of negative emotions such as greed and dependence.

The waiter knocked lightly on the door, and only after obtaining permission from the people inside pushed the door slightly open a gap that was only accessible to ordinary people sideways, and then waved to the last guest to arrive.

Aldrich took a deep breath and silently stepped inside, facing the pale blue smoke, the strong smell of tobacco filling the small room, he shook his head secretly, but for the sake of the private letter, and for the sake of Baron Federi, he suppressed the evil feeling in his heart.

After being instructed by his host, Tris took a seat in the only empty seat, looking around to the left and right sides and across the street, more than half of the participants knew each other and had interacted with him not long ago.

The House of Representatives Sales Committee headed by Anse Claire, and several other people dressed in civilian clothes, faintly revealed the same temperament as himself, and were estimated to be the chief knights of the city guard system.

"The nobles, the military, and the people in charge of the money bags suddenly summoned to the baron's private house in the middle of the night when the night was heavy, could there be something explosive. ”

Aldrich suddenly had a very bad premonition, his idea was indeed right, as the convener of the conclave, Baron Federi nodded slightly to his cronies, and saw Rep. Anse Clare quietly stand up and distribute a piece of information or war report in his handbag to everyone present.

Triss flipped through the pages without exception, frowning slightly, but did not show any superfluous emotion, which surprised his parliamentarian friends who were staring at his every move, and then snickered with relief.

Seeing the reaction of everyone present, Baron Federi took off his heather pipe and tapped it lightly on the ashtray on the table: "The tide of war in the northern seas has suddenly turned, and the descendants of those pirates have come up with new weapons, which have a longer range than our steel ballistas, are more accurate than our ship-borne bed crossbows, and the destructive power is amazing, and the side sides run through on both sides, and the fleet of our Customs Union has suffered great losses. All of you, what do you think?"

A knight captain, who was obviously the core of the city guard, gently raised his right hand to signal, and with the permission of the host of the secret meeting, he grabbed a chart scroll from behind him, slowly spread it out, and presented it in front of many participants.

"The topography of Moon Island in the North Sea and the nearby marine hydrology, where a detachment of a detachment rested and replenished, was suddenly attacked by the warships of the three countries in the North Sea. Even with the early warning signal, our fleet immediately reacted and entered the battle, only to be wiped out by the enemy's new weapons. Relying on Master Edmundo's war chess deduction, I, Els, will demonstrate to you the first battle of the opponent's new weapon. ”

The volume was only the size of a palm, and a total of twelve toy-like converted merchant ships were placed (moored) by him in the arc-shaped harbor, with an unobstructed view of the sea, and five strange warships that were a hundred times smaller.

"Our ballistae are very accurate, and after leaving the harbor, they line up in an array to seize the advantageous attack point, but the opponent's new weapons have a longer range than our ballistas, and they are constantly attacking in circles. ”

The Knight Commander used a long-handled putter to remove one of our ships one by one, even though the participants were thrilled to know that this was a game of regression.

"After an hour and a half, after the replenishment and rest were completed, the superior detachment was eaten by the enemy's whale devour, and our counterattack, including a decisive charge, quickly approached and entered the broadside battle, all of which were cracked or solved halfway by new weapons, after all, the closer the distance, the higher the accuracy. ”

A member of the House of Representatives of the Sales Committee raised his hand: "I would like to know the enemy's losses. ”

Els thought carefully before he replied: "According to the memories of the survivors of this battle, the warships of the three countries in the North Sea equipped with new weapons have almost no losses, and even if there are, they have very few losses, after all, they have the absolute upper hand in the situation. ”

As Anse Claire had expected, most of the attendees let out a wailing sigh, so he turned his head to the last seat, and at his own suggestion, Aldrich Triss, who had been summoned by Baron Federi in a private message.

Feeling the burning gaze of his friend, the president of the scavenger union naturally raised his right hand, and only after receiving permission did he ask his question in a calm tone: "I want to know the characteristics of the new weapons of the three countries in the North Sea, the range is above our steel ballista, and the detachment has been passively beaten throughout the whole process, which is really a bit incredible. ”

The chief knight nodded secretly with satisfaction, "Finally, there are smart people who can see the key, if they are all frightened by the bad news ahead, then this war can be avoided." ”

He took out a notebook from his pocket, flipped through a few pages, and then raised his head and replied: "The enemy's new weapon, according to the survivors' description, has a loud sound like thunder and roar, and even on the empty sea, it can still reach everyone's ears through a considerable distance. ”

Aldrich, who probably understood what the so-called new weapon was all about, felt a little relieved, and the memories of his previous life were leisurely recalled, and the king of war, who ruled for centuries, finally appeared.

He just couldn't figure out a little that the poor and remote ice and snow land of the Three Kingdoms of Beihai had no fertile soil for technology accumulation and not enough talent reserves.

As many of the people present waited for Tris's next words, Aldrich was silent for a moment, remembering that when the North Sea was gilded, the pirate's descendants were able to repair the engineering skills of the ballista, clearly from a lost race.

"It is said that the Harolds of the Three Kingdoms of the North Sea have taken in some of the valley dwarves, and the powerful blasting powder used for mining may be related to the new weapons. ”

When Els heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he seemed to have found a key clue, and then fell into deep thought, and finally shook his head slightly. The participants couldn't help but sigh one after another, as if they could not see hope, and fell into a desperate situation.

Tris had to prompt again: "Siege mortar!"

The knight chief nodded lightly as if he was affirming and agreeing, but soon he began to shake his head: "The mortar cannon is a curve throw, and the accuracy is outrageously low, and the new weapons of the three countries in the North Sea are all flat fire, which is definitely not the same thing." ”

"Obtaining the dwarven engineering technology, especially the accumulation of metal smelting, may be able to combine the existing advantages, otherwise the new weapons will not come out of thin air, and the battle situation will definitely be at a disadvantage, and the three countries of the North Sea have to take them out. There is also the battle of Moon Island, the enemy's five warships are loaded with new weapons, and our detachment will definitely not be able to support it for an hour and a half. ”

Els propped up the table with his hands in fists, stared sideways at the deputy head of the Night Patrol who was speaking, and his tone was somewhat uncertain and trusting: "You mean that the new weapons of the Three Kingdoms of the North Sea are actually not very numerous, and they have just been equipped with warships. ”

"Yes, even though I'm not familiar with naval battles, the Battle of Moon Island gave me an experimental kind of fighting. Of course, this is just my personal opinion!"

"No, of all the people here, you are the only one who has fought in the Northern Seas, and this secret meeting specially summoned you for the same reason. ”

Baron Federi, who had been silent, spoke, and the chief knight immediately took his seat respectfully, while Anse Claire, who recommended him, secretly sent encouraging glances with his benefactor and biggest supporter.