Iron Head had precisely observed this four-wheel miner’s cart. It could run on the wooden tracks and was made from top to bottom completely out of iron. Using so much iron should have cost a lot of money. The key reason that it could move on those thin sticks of wood without falling laid in the way of its construction. The inside edge of the wheel was larger than the rest, fixing it firmly on the rail. On top of the wheels there stood a boxy iron pot, which had on its end and beginning each a small hole where they could be tied together with a hemp rope.
He couldn’t help himself from admiring His Royal Highness’ wisdom, with such a simple design, he had made the transporting of the ore so much easier. Before his invention, it was the transportation of the ore, which was the most time-consuming labor.
However, this system also wasn’t perfect, for example, just after five days of usage, there were already two wooden rails which had been crushed under the weight, and it didn’t take much time until others followed after them. Later, His Royal Highness had wrapped all the rails in a thin layer of iron, somewhat improving the durability of the rails.
In addition to the problems with the tracks, the mine also had a rope break by accident, which still haunted Iron Head until this day. According to the regulations, they should only drag four mine carts out at the same time. But on that day, the miners were unusually quick, and because of this, they had linked six mine carts together. During the first half of the transport everything went well, but then suddenly broke one of the hemp ropes. The rebound of the half arm-thick rope was so powerful that the miner who got hit by the rope got several ribs broken. The mine carts instead slid down from the trail and knocked several of the miners off their feet, crushing their legs under it.
Fortunately, Iron Head who had encountered such an accident himself instantly knew what to do. He immediately organized some miners who help him to transport the injured men to the home of the Viscount. He was aware that as long as they still had some life left in them, Miss Nana would be able to heal them as if nothing had ever happened.
“Old Iron, the mine carts are out!” shouted a man who was responsible for overlooking the mine entrance.
Hearing this, Iron Head shouted his next orders, “Frank, wait ten breath and only then should you shut down the steamer, pay attention to the order!”
“Understood!”
After the four mine carts, had slowly stopped at the end of the track, Iron Head went over to record the results of their harvest. The first two carts were filled with a reddish-brown stone, iron ore, which was also the same kind of mineral which was found the most in the mine, the third cart was filled with grayish stones with hints of yellow, which should be copper. But when Iron Head came to the fourth cart, he got rooted on the spot immediately, in it was a kind of ore he had never seen before: The were of a dark brown, but when they sunlight fell on them, they sprinkled in a dark metallic luster.
These stones are clearly an unknown mineral, Iron Head shook his head, the Northern Slope Mine is so large and has so many branches; it’s normal that we would find inexplicable things in it. So, he just drew a cross on his paper, giving the signal to send the carts further into the warehouse. As for the pile of black stone, whether it would be directed to the furnace or not, had nothing to do with him.
Chapter 143 Migrants
The sailboat coming from Longsong Stronghold slowly docked at the pier of Border Town.
After the gangway was lowered, the people on the ship began to walk down the gangway while carrying all kinds of bags. For most of them, it was the first time that they had set foot on this strange land, so they appeared to be somewhat at a loss by what they saw, but the sailors behind them urged them to move further and disregard their uneasy feelings.
When the crowd began to push forward, a middle-aged woman’s foot accidentally slipped. Her body became so unbalanced that she was already falling over the gangway. However, another woman quickly stepped ahead and caught the middle-aged woman’s wrist, stopping her fall.
“Thank… thank you,” the rescued woman’s chest was still rising and falling quickly, showing her lingering fear as she said thank you several times.
The other woman, however, just cheerfully waved her hand, indicating that a thank you wasn’t necessary.
Standing on the pier and waiting for the arriving travelers was Ferlin Eltek. he immediately saw that the skillfully acting woman was Irene, his beloved wife. She wore a white dress, and her long hair was coiled up on top of her head; she always looked beautiful and refined.
The knight was no longer able to suppress his excitement. The moment Irene finally set foot on the pier, he immediately began to quickly approach her, forcing the poor woman who was still clinging on to her away from her while totally disregarding the shouts of the people around him. Getting approached so unexpectedly, Irene became shocked, but the moment she recognized that it was Ferlin who had hugged her, she fell into his arms.
“When I heard the news of the Duke’s defeat, I got really scared. And when I later tried to meet you in Longsong Stronghold, I never got the chance,” Irene immediately began to speak, “Fortunately, you are safe now.”
“I was imprisoned in the dungeon of the Lord ‘s castle, and it was impossible for the guards to let you in,” Ferlin explained as he let go of his wife. “How was your time during the last half month, was it okay?
“…” For a moment she didn’t give him an answer but then she quietly said, “I left the theater.”
Ferlin immediately understood the meaning behind his wife’s words. During the time when he was still the First Knight in the Western Territories, only the Duke dared to lay his hands on her body. However, when he had become His Royal Highness’ prisoner, the men in Irene’s theater group no longer had to hide their malicious intents. They were only waiting for the right opportunity to assault her. So if she had still gone to the theater to work, it would be the same as sending a sheep into a tiger’s den.
“That does not matter, I got a job here, and the salary also isn’t low.” Ferlin tried to comfort her, “Let us first go home. There, we can talk in peace.”
“Home?” Irene was clearly surprised, “We do not have to live separately?”
Usually, the prisoners who weren’t killed during the fight and who weren’t bought free were mostly used as coolies. These prisoners were packed in bunches and had to live in tents or barracks, laying on the ground which was only covered with straw. At the same time, the families of such prisoners weren’t treated any better. The women had to live in special camps, where they also had to sleep on the floor. During the time the men worked, the women had to clean up the men’s homes and wash their laundry.
Thinking of this, Ferlin got a warm feeling within his heart. At the farm near the Longsong Stronghold, Irene at least had her own spacious room with a comfortable and soft bed. Yet, she still chose to come to Border Town on her own. Even though she knew that she had to live with other women in a small house or tent and would have to do forced labor every day she didn’t flinch.
“I am now a teacher.” in one hand he took Irene’s luggage and with the other he grabbed her hand. They walked side by side in the direction of the “New Civilization” district, “As a teacher, I get my own house for free.”
To tell the truth, when he had first heard the teachers’ treatment from the Prince, he hadn’t expected too much. As a prisoner, having his own room could be seen as good. Even if the room had leaks where the wind or the rain could come through, it would still be a good living area after repairing it himself. Thinking of this, the actual result was totally unexpected for him; he had never thought that the assigned houses for the teachers would be so… regular.