Chapter 368: Chapter 55, If You Don’t Seek Death, You Won’t Die
 

Milan City, Treos, the newly rising textile tycoon. The Austro-Ausa War of 1848 directly caused a major reshuffling of the capital sector in the Lombardy Region, and Treos emerged as a prominent figure during this interlude.

Once wealthy, his goals became different, Treos’s ancestors were also of nobility, but the family had fallen into decline by his grandfather’s generation.

At this time, Treos was contemplating whether to acquire a title to restore the glory of his ancestors.

Gaining a title in Austria was not easy, yet as a wealthy “Divine Shield” player, he still had an advantage over ordinary civilian players.

The colonial system provided them with opportunities; as long as one was willing to pour in money, to recruit a large number of mercenaries to carve out colonies in the African Continent in exchange for merit, a title could eventually be hammered out.

This was not the simplest path, yet it was the most fitting for Treos. Joining the army and going to the battlefield made obtaining a title easier, but this was never the choice of capitalists.

The nobility had a higher social status, but in the business world, nobles did not have a particular advantage, as many of their privileges had dwindled.

Treos had always been weighing the pros and cons; acquiring merit through overseas colonization also depended on luck, and the input-output often did not correlate.

In this aspect, actually, the nobility had more of an advantage as they cultivated military leadership skills from a young age, and some nobles even had vassals and private armies inherited from their ancestors, which naturally made the colonial teams they formed more combat capable.

Capable colonial teams were basically guaranteed not to lose money; even if they didn’t discover any resources, as long as they pillaged along their way and cooperated with labor export companies to help native tribes emigrate, there were earnings to be made.

As long as colonial teams did not lose money, they could operate long-term, and over time, merit naturally accumulated.

This was something capitalists could not compare with; their advantage lay in having money. With money came people, and these years’ retired officers were in high demand; most capitalists recruited them to form colonial teams, and their combat strength wasn’t too bad.

Unfortunately, not everyone was willing to venture to the African Continent. With the increasing number of colonial teams, there weren’t enough retired officers willing to go to the colonies, and salary costs were rising daily.

As a latecomer, one had no choice but to lower recruitment standards, which inevitably reduced the combat effectiveness of the colonial teams.

Lacking strong combat capabilities did not mean that one couldn’t colonize the African Continent. However poor the combat strength was, dealing with some native tribes was not an issue; it was just that the casualties were somewhat high.

If luck was bad, the compensation alone from a single campaign could bleed a person dry. The compensation standards set by the Austrian colonial teams now generally ranged from 500 to 1800 shields, which were simply too costly to afford.

The appearance of Stephen brightened Treos’s prospects, while others were ridiculing Stephen for recruiting Italian mercenaries with no combat strength, Treos saw the other side—cheapness.

As a qualified capitalist, Treos’s strength was his constant focus on cost-saving.

The price to recruit a single regular Teutonic mercenary could cover the hiring of two Italian mercenaries; the price for an elite mercenary could even recruit five Italian ones.

Beyond the low labor costs, casualty compensation could also be reduced to within 300 shields. If recruited from the Italian States, in the event of heavy losses, one might even dodge compensation completely.

As long as one was careful not to be too eager for quick success and avoid recklessness, the slightly less powerful Italian mercenaries could still sweep through native tribes. After all, with the low costs, more individuals could be recruited, which also brought an advantage when doing labor export business.

Just as Treos had resolved to collaborate with Stephen, a letter shattered all his illusions.

“`

Not everyone dreams of revolution or independence; Treos had no desire to change the status quo, even though he was also influenced by Italian nationalism.

Donating money during peaceful times to preserve Italian traditional culture was fine, but taking to the battlefield personally was out of the question.

He wouldn’t even consider funding the Revolutionary Party. Treos was shrewd and never engaged in deals that were bound to fail.

Nationalists often had differing political ideologies, especially when interests came into play, as interests often dictated ideology.

As a textile magnate, it seemed that breaking away from Austria could reduce his competition and even monopolize the Italian market.

But in reality, once away from Austria, raw materials could very well cost him his life.

Talking about importing from overseas was easy, but if he became entirely reliant on imports, any disturbance in the international cotton market could spell his doom.

The United Kingdom could become a cotton spinning powerhouse, not just because of a strong textile industry but also thanks to a powerful Royal Navy and vast colonies providing markets to secure its interests.

An independent Italy would not ensure his interests. Treos was simply dissatisfied with the Vienna Government’s policies and wanted to abolish the current policy of national integration and the Labor Protection Law.

This was an entirely different concept from rebellion. Many were dissatisfied with national policies, after all, no single policy could please everyone.

If people revolted because they were unhappy with one government policy, wouldn’t the world be in chaos? Who could ever satisfy everyone?

Thinking of the vast numbers of mercenaries in the hands of Stephen and others, Treos’s expression changed, and he immediately shouted, “Martin, prepare the carriage immediately; I must go to the city hall.”

No matter whether the revolution succeeded or not, business would be bad once the war started. Bankruptcy was possible if luck turned sour and marauding soldiers came calling.

As a victor of the last reshuffle, Treos had no desire for another round. He was a capitalist but also an industrialist, not the type of merchant who just bought low and sold high; when war ignited, his factory had nowhere to hide.

…

In the Pécs Region of the Transleithanian Province, several members of the Hungarian Independence Organization were nervously delivering letters according to a contact list.

For safety’s sake, everyone was using their ingenuity. Some hid them in the soles of their shoes, others sewed them into their clothing, and the particularly clever ones converted them into numerical codes, using the Bible as a medium.

With traitors in their midst, all these efforts were in vain. Compared to the Austrian Italian Region, the Hungarian Region’s purge was more thorough, and those who escaped did so due to their wits.

Poor Dominic, tasked with delivering letters, had the misfortune of running into his master and was subsequently detained.

After reading the letter, Brooks couldn’t help but curse Stephen’s entire family. In their early years, the two were like-minded friends, striving together for Hungarian independence.

But times had changed. The Brooks who was past middle age was no longer the naïve idealist he once was.

He had escaped the earlier ordeal thanks to a stroke of luck, falling ill and not having managed to join in the rebellion.

“`

After recovering from his illness, the rebellion had already occurred, and Brooks, with revolutionary inclinations, was put under house arrest by his father, who remained loyal to the Emperor.

Owing to his father’s voluntary participation in the suppression of the rebellion, which earned him military honors, his suspicion was cleared.

Time is the best weapon; in the blink of an eye, his father passed away, and Brooks, no longer constrained, mixed again with the surviving nationalists.

By then, everyone was no longer just shouting slogans for independence but opposing the Vienna Government’s national divisions and unification of language and script.

Violent resistance was impossible; the stubborn had already met God in the independence movement. Brooks was not foolish; he was fully aware of the consequences of opposing the government head-on.

Due to personal friendships, Brooks still maintained secret contacts with some members of the Hungarian Independence Organization, but this did not include Stephen.

There was no way around it; who would have thought Stephen would be a political exile? There were many members of the Hungarian Independence Organization, and they had caused a lot of trouble, yet most of them were not actually wanted.

Brooks was clever; these people were exiled abroad and not wanted; even if his contact with them was exposed, he could pretend to be unaware.

Having many friends makes the journey easier, just like this time when the Hungarian Independence Organization was plotting something, and a friend hinted at him to stay away.

Seeing this letter, Brooks very much doubted that someone was out to get him. The content was too detailed, even including the date of the uprising.

Normally, he, who had not actually joined the Hungarian Independence Organization, wouldn’t be trusted. Weren’t they afraid he would report them?

Brooks tentatively asked, “Mr. Dominic, why revolt on February 15th? We are not at all prepared.”

Dominic didn’t think too much of it; they were among their own people, no need for secrecy.

“Sir Brooks, a new wave of revolution has arrived in Europe. This time we are joining hands with other revolutionary groups to launch uprisings together in January and February.

We delayed the uprising to February 15th because we were not fully prepared. But don’t worry, the first to rise against Austria will be in the Italian Area.

We have already recruited thousands of mercenaries and have the coordination of local revolutionary groups; this uprising will surely succeed!”

After hearing Dominic’s words, Brooks’s doubts were halved. It seemed he truly was a member of the Hungarian Independence Organization, bearing the same divine expression as he did when he was young.

Brooks continued to inquire, “Is there any message from my old friends?”

Since he was hinted to stay far away, under normal circumstances, these friends would have no reason to drag him back in—this letter was obviously not simple.

After some thought, Dominic said, “Mr. Paul said to send his regards if I saw you. He also said to keep the ham for him until he comes to eat it.

Mr. Solam asked how things are at your old place. He misses the time of the great revolution very much, it’s a pity we failed last time, but not this time.”

These seemingly incomprehensible words didn’t strike Dominic as anything unusual; he took them as old friends catching up.

But for Brooks, “ham” was a code word for retreat in the past—undeniably, this was telling him to flee.

“The time of the great revolution” certainly wasn’t a fond memory for them; watching comrades fall one by one, countless like-minded friends all purged.

Having figured out the situation, Brooks broke out in a cold sweat.

Others might not know the Hungarian Independence Organization had received American funding, but Brooks knew it well, and his friends didn’t spare their complaints about Americans giving orders.

Connecting this to the current American civil war, Brooks instantly understood many things.

He definitely could not join this uprising; either he should pack up and flee, waiting for things to settle before returning, or he should report immediately and extricate himself from the situation.

Dominic, puzzled, asked, “Sir Brooks, what’s wrong?”

Looking at the naïve Dominic, Brooks felt a pang of conscience and hesitated before saying, “I’m alright. The situation in the Hungarian Region is very complicated, Dominic, you should finish your task quickly and leave, take a ship to Russia to lay low.”

Dominic was startled and asked, “Why?”

Brooks shook his head, “The police in the Pécs Region have keen noses, and the contact list is on you; if an accident happens, the organization’s efforts here will be ruined.”

Dominic said firmly, “Don’t worry, Mr. Brooks. I didn’t bring the list with me, even if something happens, the enemy won’t gain anything from it.”

Brooks didn’t continue to persuade; he may not have known what the Hungarian Independence Organization’s goals were this time, but he was very clear that those sent out were all expendable.

Persuading was just Brooks’s worry that if Dominic were caught, he might confess about his contacts with the Hungarian Independence Organization.

But thinking it over, Brooks mulled that even if Dominic escaped disaster, these matters wouldn’t stay secret either.

Such contact between friends wouldn’t count for much in normal times and couldn’t convict him. But when a major change occurred, it would be different; it could even cost him his title.

Brooks had only two choices left: either to flee and live in exile abroad or to report to the government and have all past incidents wiped clean.

After some hesitation, Brooks decided to betray just this once, since the current situation was too mysterious, and fraught with fog.

“Dominic, I don’t doubt your loyalty; this is just the caution we ought to have, to avoid making needless sacrifices.

If you’re willing to help, you could deliver a few letters for me. Now is a critical time, I should not meet them in person, and I don’t trust my subordinates to deliver them.”

Without a doubt, Brooks was preparing to use others as a pawn.

Having enemies is part of the game, and Brooks was no exception. He took this opportunity to implicate them, removing a few obstacles without any pressure.

…