69novels Chapter 59: Royal Power Doesn't Reach the Countryside
Chapter 59: Royal Power Doesn't Reach the Countryside
"Tell me, what's on the other side of the sea?"
The port of Pentos at night.
Player [Ironman] gazes into the distance.
"There might be an invisible wall on the other side of the sea," player [Crescent Moon Sky Rush] said, looking at him with annoyance.
"So you're asking me to take time off just so I can spend time with you in the game and enjoy the scenery?"
[The Weightlifting Superman] looked up from the sea and patted his friend on the shoulder:
"Hey bro, wanna try completing a hidden quest?"
Upon hearing this, [Crescent Moon Sky] was visibly taken aback and asked blankly, "What hidden quest?"
"We're both new players, and we're not as rich as those whales. So, if we want to have a good time in the game, we'll have to find another way, won't we?" [Ironman] said mysteriously.
"Stop keeping me in suspense! Tell me your thoughts already!" [Crescent Moon Sky Rush] was a little impatient. Who would want to be a random player if they could be a pro?
"Do you remember the main quest from the cutscenes?" [Iron-Pumping Superman] said slowly.
"I remember, it's about helping Brother Wei restore his country. What kind of hidden mission is that? What, did you find a nuclear bomb in the Black Iron Treasure Chest yesterday?" [Crescent Moon Sky] was completely confused.
"Hey, no, that's not it," [Ironman] chuckled. "I just have an idea."
"What idea?" [Crescent Moon Sky] looked around and, seeing that there was no one else around, asked in a low voice.
"Cross the sea and kill that usurper Robert." These words, spoken by [Ironman], left [Crescent Moon Sky Crow] speechless, his mouth agape in disbelief.
"No, buddy, you mean the two of us should go assassinate the game's big boss?" After a long while, [Crescent Moon Sky] looked at the other person with a "Do you have a fever?" look.
"Big BOSS? The game isn't set in a fantasy world, what are you afraid of!" [Iron-lifting Superman] pulled out a small transparent jar from his pocket, which was filled to the brim with a green, transparent liquid.
"Damn it, with this thing, who wouldn't die if it burned? Give me a straight answer, are you going to do it or not?"
Upon seeing what the other person was holding, [Crescent Moon Sky Rush] suddenly realized: "Good heavens, I was wondering why you'd have such audacity! So you have something this good! Tell me, how did you get involved with those fire sorcerers?"
"It has nothing to do with those fire sorcerers. This thing is pretty useless; the natives don't dare use it easily, which is why you can find it in black iron chests. With this thing, as long as we get close to that usurper, we'll self-destruct. I refuse to believe that killing him won't yield a hidden reward!"
[Iron-lifting Superman] put away the can and turned his gaze to the other side of the strait.
"But how are we going to get across?" [Crescent Moon Sky] scratched his head, looking at the sea with worry.
"Hmph, look at you, you've obviously never ridden a train before..." [Iron-lifting Superman] raised his head, as if he could strategize and control the situation if given a feather fan.
"Trying to hitch a ride and skip the fare?"
"Sigh, how can you call it escaping when it comes to the players' affairs? It's borrowing..."
At the same time, the intelligence chief, who had been in the game for two days without logging off, was recalling the information that the palace eunuch had sent to the group.
"Wow, how come I never thought of using the camera function like this?" Isn't this inconspicuous camera function, which players use purely for taking pictures, a powerful tool for gathering intelligence?
In those spy dramas, the agents have to carry around a miniature camera to take pictures, but the players have one built-in!
Oh dear, I never thought of that!
[Calling a mouse a duck] He smacked his lips as if he had lost eight million.
Looking around, he saw that many of his men had already logged off and were currently fast asleep. [Pointing at a mouse and calling it a duck] shook his head and decided to select a few more clever ones tomorrow, make good use of this function, and then send them out as spies.
As the head of intelligence, I haven't gathered any useful information these days, just arrested people for fun. If this continues, I'll really become a "Gestapo" for nothing.
His bunch of bastards were all quite willing, but he didn't want to be that bespectacled little girl, Xizi.
The thought of that bastard "Flying Bat" recently urging me to dress up the brothers in black capes, big hats, and little red sleeves, and calling a mouse a duck, makes me furious.
What the hell is this?
Inside Viserys's room, the fireplace crackled and popped.
The three dragon eggs lying quietly inside showed no sign of hatching.
Daenerys held her face in her hands, somewhat discouraged.
Yes, Sir Jorah said these are just fossils.
But Viserys said that one day they would hatch, and the Targaryens would have dragons again.
Looking at her brother, who was bent over his desk, frowning in thought, Daenerys instinctively believed what he said more.
Viserys tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table, looking at the list in front of him with a headache.
He had only recently discovered that Pentos's tax revenue was not actually in the hands of the governors; those dimwits had actually come up with a tax farmer system, outsourcing the tax collection.
Even though Pentos is now his territory, Viserys still has to split the annual tax revenue 50/50 with the tax collectors appointed by the previous dynasty.
"Damn it, they got three million of my money, and I got only one million! Am I supposed to thank them?"
Viserys suddenly remembered a line from a TV series he had watched in his previous life, spoken by the Jiajing Emperor.
Damn, he really wanted to immediately order "Calling a Mouse a Duck" to bring his men and give these tax farmers a good beating.
Unfortunately, it's impossible to touch these people for the time being, because if Viserys kills these tax farmers, he really can't find a large number of grassroots talents in the countryside who have prestige and can collect taxes.
Without a respected local figure to help you collect taxes, the farmers in the countryside of Pentos will genuinely hoard grain; they truly won't pay.
The saying "royal power does not extend to the countryside" is nothing more than this.
He can't just send players to slaughter farmers in the countryside because they hoard more grain and pay less tax.
If Viserys remembers correctly, it seems that the French Bourbon dynasty on Earth implemented a tax farming system in its later years.
While this system has its merits—stable finances in the short term and low collection costs—it ultimately reflects the government's inability to directly collect taxes from farmers in rural areas.
Pentos has clearly already enjoyed the benefits of short-term fiscal stability, and now he, the one who took over, has to bear the consequences of the tax farmers' corruption.
In my memory, one of the reasons for the sudden collapse of the Bourbon dynasty was that these tax farmers acted as parasites.
Those tax farmers exploited the people for profit, levying excessive taxes and a mountain of exorbitant levies, which exacerbated social conflicts. This was likely one of the reasons why the old Parisian turned against the king.
Most importantly, the people are suffering, taxes are excessive, and I haven't seen any money!
This was something Viserys could not tolerate. If it were that these tax farmers levied exorbitant taxes and then split the profits with him 70/30, that would be one thing.
At worst, the people of Pentos will suffer, and Viserys will bear the blame. Anyway, the dynasties of the world are probably all the same.
The worst part is that these bastards are planning to split the profits 30/70 with him. Who can tolerate that?!