Making Money Means Begging? Wouldn't That Make Me a Beggar?!

Ye Hua scanned the hall, a cold smile playing on his lips.

Notting City, Fruit Wine Town, North Village Town...

There are fewer than ten people in total!

He didn't say anything, but simply picked up his glass and took a small sip.

Xiao Lin, the city lord of Notting City, stepped forward with a smile.

"You must be tired from your long journey, sir. Why don't you rest first?"

"We have prepared a small feast to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey!"

Xiao Lin glanced around, a cold smile flashing deep in his eyes.

It must be said, this person is quite capable, managing to arrive before the official imperial document was issued!

They even produced Lord's certificate to prove their identity, catching him completely off guard!

But who is he?

A master of tax evasion!

They keep making false accounts year after year, so why worry about any slip-ups?

Moreover, everyone present was of one mind with him!

You think you can suppress us just because Lord? Dream on!

"No rush." Ye Hua put down his wine cup. "Do you have the ledger?"

Really!

Every Lord loves money!

Xiao Lin sneered inwardly.

He's just a student, why does he want to see the ledger right away?

He calmly waved his hand behind him, and several attendants stepped forward carrying thick ledgers, stacking them in front of Ye Hua.

"Sir, these are the tax ledgers from recent years, each entry is recorded clearly!"

The other city lords echoed this sentiment and handed over their account books.

His facial expression remained perfectly calm, without the slightest trace of panic!

Ye Hua casually flipped the book open, glanced at it briefly, and then closed it.

Xiao Lin's contempt deepened; just looking at him must give him a headache!

However, the next second--

"The grain tax was incorrect in March of the year before last!"

"There were irregularities in commercial tax payments last June!"

"And this year the Empire allocated 1,000 Gold Soul Coin for road repairs, but where are the roads?"

"When I came here, the road was full of potholes. Is this what you call road repair?"

Xiao Lin was stunned.

How could he see through it!

Ye Hua sneered; he truly couldn't read accounts or do accounting.

Unfortunately, these guys were completely treating him like a fool!

The accounts appear meticulous on the surface, but they don't hold up to scrutiny!

He had lived in Notting City for six years, and everyone knew exactly who the landlords and wealthy people were, yet these people paid the least taxes!

Such account books could only fool the tax official who was unaware of the truth; how could they possibly fool him?

He closed the ledger and looked at the other city lords.

"Your accounts aren't the same, are they?"

The hall was completely silent.

The city lords looked at each other in bewilderment.

[bite--]

[Corruption detected among officials in the host territory, triggering a temporary quest]

[Task Name: Purge the Vermin]

[Mission Objective: Eliminate corrupt officials and consolidate power within the territory]

[Task Reward: One hundred Administrative Official System (high, medium, and low ranks, specializing in internal affairs, taxation, construction, and law; loyalty is guaranteed)]

[Mission Description: My money! My money! They took my money, and now I have to thank them?!]

Ye Hua suppressed a smile; this suited him perfectly.

But when he looked at Xiao Lin, the other man showed no sign of panic.

"Alas," Xiao Lin sighed, "Your Excellency is indeed extremely perceptive!"

"You have no idea how tough it is for us city lords!"

"Which of those wealthy families in the city doesn't have connections? They don't pay taxes, what can we do?"

"Just covering the imperial taxes is barely enough to make ends meet; what remains in the public accounts is practically nothing!"

The other city lords nodded in agreement.

"That's right!"

"We were forced into this situation!"

"Sir, you've just arrived and are unaware of the difficulties!"

Seeing that Ye Hua remained silent, Xiao Lin assumed he had been persuaded and grew bolder.

"Sir, it's not difficult to get the money; it just depends on whether you're willing!"

"Oh?" Ye Hua smiled enigmatically. "Tell me about it."

Xiao Lin said smugly, "Creating up pretexts to increase tax revenue!"

"The money from the big spenders will be returned to the original payment method; the remaining money will be split 70/30!"

Ye Hua raised an eyebrow, "Seventy-three percent?"

"That's right," Xiao Lin said without batting an eye, "The big spenders take 70%, and we take 30%. Of course, that 30% depends on the big spenders' attitude!"

"And what about the ordinary people?"

"Ordinary people? They're lucky to even be alive, what more could they want?"

The hall fell silent.

"Then I'll be a beggar?" Ye Hua sneered.

"I'm begging!" Xiao Lin said without changing his expression.

"Whom shall we beg from?"

"A big spender!"

"Who is the big spender?"

"Oh, they're just rich city folks!"

Nonsense! You're the richest person in Notting City?!

I'm asking you for food?

Are you trying to sideline me and siphon off my taxes?

"Tie Xiong."

"Exist!"

"Kill him."

Clang--

Xiao Lin's head flew skyward!

Holy crap!

The surviving city lords were all stunned!

Shouldn't you try to outsmart us?

Shouldn't we find the evidence before committing murder?

Do you even know the rules?!

What to do, what to do, what to do...

The city lords tacitly looked at Xiao Lin's second-in-command.

That fat guy was really stubborn; he repeatedly put Xiao Lin in an awkward position!

Only with his silver tongue could he persuade this little devil to lay down his butcher's knife.

Sure enough, under everyone's watchful eyes, the fat official got carried away!

After being suppressed by Xiao Lin for so long, it's finally my turn to take charge!

I'll use reason to verbally destroy Ye Hua!!!

The man took two steps forward, yanked off his hat, flung his robe aside, and glared angrily.

"Ye Hua, I'll fuck you..."

Clang--

The second half of the sentence got stuck in my throat.

There were several human heads scattered on the ground.

Ye Hua scratched his ear.

What did he want to say? Never mind, it's not important!

"The rest are useless, kill them too!"

The city lords were dumbfounded when they saw the two headless corpses on the ground.

This world has gone mad!

We are officials appointed by the Empire itself, not by you Ye Hua!

Aren't you afraid of imperial punishment if you play like this?

His Crown Prince Xue Qinghe detests you Lord who run rampant in your territory!

But seeing Ye Hua get up, Tie Xiong drew his sword and didn't care about arguing anymore.

Thump!

The room was filled with people kneeling on the floor!

"Sir, spare my life!"

"Please be lenient, we will definitely work hard!"

But Ye Hua didn't react.

The Ironblood Heavy Sword, continued to be stained with blood.

Blood splattered everywhere!

After the killing, Ye Hua remained calm and instructed the clerk on duty to summon the wealthy man.

It was already past midnight when Ye Hua invited some prominent gentry from Notting City to his residence.

They were still cursing as they entered the hall.

"What Earl? I've never even heard of him!"

"Why did you drag us out of bed in the middle of the night?"

"Exactly, even Earl shouldn't bully people, right?"

But when they saw the bloodstains on the ground and the headless corpse, their eyes instantly cleared!

Gulp

Someone swallowed hard, and the thumping of a heart echoed in the air.

Ye Hua sat in the main seat, toying with a wine glass.

"Is everyone here?"

The minor official he had dispatched stammered, "They're all here!"

"That's good," Ye Hua stood up. "I, Ye Hua, am the new master of this place."

"I called you here today to inform you of a few things."

"First, pay your taxes honestly."

"Secondly, don't even think about embezzling my tax money."

"Third..."

"Sir!" A fat, burly merchant stepped forward. "Isn't this a bit unreasonable of you?"

"We control most of the city's supply of goods!"

"If you kill us all, all the shops in town will have to close down!"

"When the time comes, the common people won't be able to buy anything, they'll starve to death, they'll die of illness, and a popular uprising might break out. As the Earl, you won't be able to explain yourself to His Majesty, will you?"

Ye Hua shrugged. "Oh, it really is difficult to explain."

The merchant smiled, "In that case..."

"Kill!"

The merchant's pupils constricted sharply. "Wait! I am King Balak Kingdom's brother-in-law! You dare kill me—"

Pfft!

The sound stopped abruptly.

No one dared to make a sound in the room anymore!

[bite--]

[Mission "Purge the Vermin" Completed]

[Rewards being distributed...]

[The Administrative Official System (12 people in total) is in place and can be summoned at any time]

Ye Hua nodded in satisfaction.

This group of government officials is enough for him to be a hands-off manager.

"Tie Xiong, take them down and settle them in!"

"Hand over administrative affairs to them, and leave defense to the Long Night Alliance!"

"Yes, sir!"

But when the news from Notting City reached the Balak Kingdom, the king was instantly enraged!

"Damn it Ye Hua dared to kill my men!"

"Wait a minute, the Promotion Tournament is about to begin!"

"I have plenty of ways to make you wish you were dead, leaving you stuck in the middle, dying a pathetic death!"