Baff didn't know, nor did he want to know, how others were faring. The clerk's position with a salary of 120 copper coins was too tempting.
He had once been a teacher in West Sun City, but most people there couldn't even afford to eat their fill, let alone have money to learn to read and write.
Therefore, he had lived in extreme poverty. Now, with a high-paying job of 120 copper coins in front of him, he was tempted.
Baff squeezed out of the crowd, adjusted his clothes, and headed towards the City Lord's Mansion. He wanted to be the first to apply, lest someone else take precedence.
Liu Feng stood inside the castle gate, watching the agitated crowd and couldn't help but chuckle. "It's a good start."
He also saw Baff walking over, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He brought the latter back into the castle.
Liu Feng sat in the main seat of the living room and looked at the nervous old scholar before him. "Are you here to apply for the clerk position?"
"Yes, yes, I am." Baff answered nervously. Could he not be nervous? The young man before him was the God of West Sun City, the only noble City Lord.
"Don't be nervous, sit down!" Liu Feng waved his hand and only asked after Baff was seated, "The clerk's job is to assist me in managing West Sun City and its territories."
"Yes!" Baff nodded hurriedly.
"Tell me about the situation in West Sun City," Liu Feng said calmly.
"Yes!" Baff quickly stood up and respectfully shared everything he knew.
As Liu Feng listened, his eyebrows furrowed more and more. This time, they were furrowed enough to pinch a fly. It was appalling.
The entire West Sun City was basically a slum, a refugee camp, and what had turned them into this was the outrageous taxes.
There were over a hundred different types of exorbitant taxes in West Sun City, such as the city entry fee, where one had to pay a copper coin each time they entered the city.
This had caused many people to move out of West Sun City or only return once every few days. The people would rather live in the wheat fields than waste a copper coin.
There were also road taxes, childbirth taxes, wheat passage taxes, marriage taxes... In short, the successive City Lords and nobles had found various ways to exploit the people.
Baff was now trembling with fear. He looked at the displeased Liu Feng and now somewhat regretted applying for the clerk position.
If he was later asked to be responsible for collecting taxes, he would immediately quit his job; otherwise, he would be cursed to death by his friends and neighbors.
Liu Feng regained his composure and looked at Baff, who was sweating profusely, and said calmly, "From today on, remove all these miscellaneous taxes and only keep a few basic ones."
"What?" Baff's eyes widened as he stared blankly at Liu Feng, wondering if he had misheard.
Liu Feng took out two scrolls of sheepskin and quickly wrote on them. The first scroll was a notice to remove certain exorbitant taxes; the other was a certificate for Baff's appointment as a clerk.
"Here, post this notice on the wooden board outside, and you can start working tomorrow," Liu Feng said as he handed the two scrolls to Baff.
Liu Feng watched Baff leave and couldn't help but sigh, "It's unbelievable that the people haven't rebelled against such outrageous taxes and levies. That old bastard Carter, really has good fortune."
"You're really different from the usual nobles."
Suddenly, a clear female voice came from beside him, startling Liu Feng. He turned his head and saw Mina standing silently nearby.
"Can you walk with some sound?" Liu Feng rolled his eyes.
"That's the instinct of a great cat warrior, and it can't be changed," Mina said indifferently.
"A City Lord who can't ensure that the people under his rule have enough to eat isn't a qualified City Lord," Liu Feng lamented.
Mina recalled the words Liu Feng had said when they first met: In this life, one can have everything but cannot go hungry.
She remained silent. She had grown up eating one meal and going hungry for the next, so she strongly agreed with those words.
"Why haven't you left yet?" Liu Feng asked curiously. He remembered that at the beginning, the cat-eared girl wasn't friendly to him, but now she was lingering here.
"Mind your own business!" Mina wrinkled her nose, shook her ears, and walked away with a sway of her hips.
...
Meanwhile, Baff left the City Lord's Mansion in a daze. When he came outside, he turned and glanced at the gate before snapping back to reality. Looking at the scroll in his hand, a radiant smile suddenly appeared on his aged face.
The people outside also saw Baff coming out of the City Lord's Mansion and immediately surrounded him, asking questions in a chatter.
"Mr. Baff, how was it? Did that vampire noble add any more taxes?"
"Yeah, what taxes did he add? Otherwise, how could he offer such a high salary?"
"If it's too much, I'll have to sneak away to another big city; otherwise, I won't be able to save enough wheat for the winter."
As Baff listened, he felt something was off. He couldn't help but raise his hand and slap the heads of the people before him hard, shouting, "What are you saying? Don't you value your lives?"
"Uh..."
Everyone fell silent and looked at the agitated Baff in surprise. Wasn't this old man usually the one complaining the most? Why had he changed today?
"Ahem..."
Baff waved the scroll in his hand and said seriously, "Things have changed this year. We have a good City Lord, so everyone's in for a treat."
"Huh???"
"Has Mr. Baff been bribed by the nobles?"
"Very likely. After all, with a salary of 120 copper coins, even I would be bribed. It would allow my family to live more comfortably and put more salt in our dishes."
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。