Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters-Chapter 935 - 28 An Offer You Can’t Refuse

Chapter 935: Chapter 28 An Offer You Can’t Refuse

John Jeska said, “I’m not going,” and he truly did not want to go.

Winters Montagne said, “It’s necessary to go,” and it indeed was necessary.

Ignoring his former superior’s objections, Winters hired a carriage in the town, and took Colonel Jeska away from Beacon Fort that night.

Besides the personal belongings that the colonel could pack in a wooden box, Winters thoughtfully brought along the peasant couple who had been taking care of the colonel’s daily needs.

When invited into the carriage, Colonel Jeska was no longer in an uncontrollable rage; he calmly questioned his former subordinate: “As a ‘freeman,’ do I no longer have the right to make decisions for myself?”

[Note: Here, ‘freeman’ refers to the minority of citizens within the Alliance who have the right to vote and to be elected.]

“According to the currently prevailing moral ethics, suicide is a serious crime, and assisting in suicide is equally an accomplice crime,” Winters casually picked up a shield: “Father Kaman said that.”

Colonel Jeska snorted, and his sharp tone from the past returned: “Captain, your moral standards seem quite flexible.”

“Please take a seat and hold on tight.” Winters, outside the carriage, politely and softly closed the door, then turned to Colonel Alec: “Shall we depart?”

Colonel Alec, who witnessed the entire process, sighed deeply: “Back when we were studying in The Federated Provinces, John Jeska was famously difficult to deal with… It’s really something that you can communicate with him normally.”

Winters patted the carriage wheel and couldn’t help but smile: “That doesn’t sound like a compliment.”

The coachman, Dusack, understanding the hint, whistled sharply signaling the departure, and with a light flick of the reins, the carriage set off ahead, escorted by five horsemen.

“Are you in such a hurry to leave?” Colonel Alec said with a playful smile: “Afraid I’d stop you?”

Winters replied: “What about your opinion then?”

“Hmph, what opinion could I have?” Colonel Alec released the reins and mounted his horse: “After all, he’s no longer one of our own. Opinion? Better ask what Kingsfort thinks of it!”

The colonel’s meaning was not hard to understand, Winters chuckled accordingly and also mounted his horse.

Just as the two were about to leave, Colonel Alec looked back at the desolate Beacon Fort and said somewhat sadly, “Staying in such a place, that blind man might survive this winter but not the next… Thank you.”

“Let’s go.” Winters lightly spurred the horse, and the two riders disappeared into the night.

…

The episode at Beacon Fort did not delay the “merchant convoy’s” journey; after rejoining the convoy, Winters continued leading them westward.

Passing through various towns, this convoy, holding a military government pass, always purchased some local specialties or overstocked goods while trying to sell as much of the carried merchandise as possible.

Their demeanor was like a true merchant convoy, rather than a group of deserters using the guise of merchants.

A back and forth like this once again aroused the suspicions of Colonel Alec.

During another busy scene of unloading and loading goods, Colonel Alec strolled up to Winters, who was deep in thought and sketching something, and casually asked: “Aren’t you in a hurry to go home?”

Winters looked up, his forehead unconsciously furrowed with three lines, and even a polite smile was hard to muster.

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He firmly closed the hardcover notebook, and somewhat impatiently said: “I know what you’re about to ask, but I don’t have that kind of thought, you can trust me.”

“Then this is…” Colonel Alec pointed behind him: “What’s this?”

Behind Colonel Alec was the warehouse of the trading post, where hundreds of convoy members and local merchant employees were sweating profusely as they unloaded and loaded the wagons.

“As you see.” Winters tried to rub off the graphite on his hands, and answered pensively: “Doing business.”

“Doing business?” Colonel Alec clearly did not buy this evasive explanation.

“Yes, doing business.” Winters exhaled long and painfully, then spread open the hard cover notebook and handed it to Colonel Alec: “I’m out of money.”

…

Unplanned spending guaranteed that Winters Montagne would periodically be on the verge of bankruptcy.

This was not very apparent during his military academy days, as students were generally periodically bankrupt. After stepping out of the Ivory Tower, the repercussions began to show. Winters had managed the finances several times, and each time inevitably ended up using everything up.

After all, Tess and Antonio had not particularly taught Winters how to manage finances.

According to the life path pre-arranged for young Montagne, rather than learning how to make money grow, it would be better to find a way to marry a wife skilled in financial matters… or a widow.

This time was no different, using the merchant convoy as a guise was a good strategy, but the problem lay in money.

Winters originally came to rescue a few old comrades, yet the team size eventually swelled to over two hundred people, far exceeding the initial estimates, and costs skyrocketed.

Purchasing vehicles, procuring goods, feeding people and horses – everything required money.

And Winters Montagne, a person who spent money like water, had cleaned out the half saddlebag of Gold Coins he brought, and even the promissory notes given by Anna were all cashed.

In the unfamiliar Jiangbei Province, he had no means to even mortgage for a loan, making it hard to move without money.

“The situation is just that.” Winters asked somewhat awkwardly: “Would you… temporarily lend some… for turnover…”