Chapter 152 Tax Policies Too Bold and Too Offensive
The Land of Sin was quite far from Lantata City; the White Feather Bird flew there from dawn till dusk and still hadn't arrived. As the sun completely dipped below the horizon, the White Feather Bird landed on a branch, preparing to forage and rest.
Papame handed her daughter to her husband, took the package off the back of the white-feathered bird, took out the bird food provided by the bird trainer, fed it to the bird, and then summoned a ball of water and brought it to the bird's beak to make it drink.
After the white-feathered bird had eaten and drunk its fill, it flapped its wings, moved from side to side on the branch to find a good spot, then ruffled its downy feathers, tucked in one leg, buried its head under its wing, and prepared to sleep.
After confirming that the white-feathered bird was in good condition, Papame was relieved. She helped her husband fly to the other end of the branch and landed on a wider branch. She took out a straw blanket and spread it out, settled her little daughter in a seat, and then prepared to boil water and cook. Dedean placed the wooden bowl on the wooden plate, struck a flint on the edge of the plate, and Papame summoned a water ball and threw it into the bowl. She then took out some dried vegetable leaves from her bundle, carefully broke off a leaf, crushed it into small pieces, and put it into the water.
In fact, Dedean usually cooked in a thin, polished stone pot. He would heat it slightly with a flint, and the water inside would boil. However, considering that the stone pot was too big and heavy, Papamei didn't bring it with her. She thought of something, rummaged through her pack again, and pulled out a golden dried fruit.
In the dim night, this plump and thick dried fruit emits a bright yet soft glow, and its sweet aroma quietly spreads.
“Honestly, Dedean, when you told me that such good fruit was given to you for free by merchants from the Land of Sin, I knew that the Land of Sin must be a good place,” Papame said softly with a smile, her hands moving nimbly as she used a sharpened wooden knife to slice off pieces of fruit.
Dedean slowly stirred the chopped green leaves and thin pieces of fruit in the bowl, his eyes crinkling into a smile: "That's what I was thinking too. Let's cook more so that Papawi can have more to eat."
Papame nodded, then sliced several more pieces of fruit into the package before putting the magically imbued dried fruit back into her bag. Taking out a few Moon Fruits, Papame gave two to her husband, while she herself ate the rest with gusto.
After filling her stomach, Papamei flew off and picked two large leaves, which she then pounded repeatedly. By the time she had pounded the leaves until they were soft, Dedean had also finished cooking the soup. The soup, which was usually a bit bitter, had dried fruit pulp added today, making it smell very sweet.
Papame picked up her drowsy daughter and gently called out, "Papame, wake up, there's sweet soup for you today."
After finishing the whole bowl of sweet soup, the little flower fairy reluctantly reached out to grab the spoon. Papamei chuckled and carried her little daughter back to the straw blanket, covering her with the now-softened leaves. The little one, who had been so energetic just moments before, fell asleep as soon as she lay down.
Papame was about to call her husband to come and rest when she looked up and saw Dedean wiping away tears. She flew over, amused, and asked, "What's wrong? Papame has eaten her fill!"
When Dedean heard his wife say this, his feelings became even more complicated and difficult to express.
Adults' meals are easy to solve; wheat leaves can be chopped and used to make soup. Not to mention, they can also pick various berries in the forest. There is a moon fruit tree planted in front of their house. However, the baby who was born not long ago has not yet grown all his teeth and cannot eat either wheat leaves or moon fruits. They also tried to juice the berries, but they did not expect that this would cause the little magic in the berries to be completely lost!
Seeing that Papawei was about to close her eyes, Dedean went to beg the city lord. He originally wanted to exchange some golden honey wheat for the magic ore treasured in his home, but he did not expect that the city lord did not have any extra food. However, the city lord still found some magical leafy greens for him and told him to dry them and preserve them. He then boiled the leafy greens in water for Papawei to drink, and Papawei gradually regained the strength to cry.
Dedean choked up as he said, "But Papave has only had one full meal since she was born, and only today..."
Papamei gently wiped away her husband's tears and comforted him with a smile, "Isn't this wonderful? From now on, Papamei will have enough to eat every day. We should be happy! Okay, okay, go and rest. I'll keep watch this night. You'll be checking the direction tomorrow. Go to sleep!"
The white-feathered bird then flew for another three days.
The moon fruits they had taken with them when they set off were all gone, so Papame and Dedean had to pick wild fruits to fill their stomachs. Dedean even caught a fever once, and Papame gritted her teeth and cut off a large piece of dried fruit to feed him. After his magic was replenished, Dedean finally woke up from his coma, but his body temperature still wouldn't go down.
On the fourth day, when they saw the endless, towering city walls appearing on the horizon in the distance, Dedean burst into tears: "We've arrived! Darling, we've arrived!"
The merchants in that caravan had told him that a snow-white city wall, materialized from a high-level defensive barrier, stood on the border of the Land of Sin. In other words, when they saw the white wall, it meant that the Land of Sin was in front of them!
Papame got excited too: "Dedean! Look! That's a magic tree! I've never seen such a big magic tree before!"
Even from this distance, one can see the lush canopy of trees beyond the tall city wall. The vibrant green, full of life, stands out vividly against the azure sky, as if it were a manifestation of vigorous vitality.
The white-feathered bird passed through the pure white wall without any hindrance. When it saw the scene in front of it, Papame stared in shock. The area outside the Land of Sin was covered with gravel and was almost an endless wasteland. Who would have thought that behind the high wall was a lush forest!
On the lush, leafy trees stand exquisite treehouses, and scattered among the trees in the distance are large fields of farmland. A network of irrigation ditches divides the fields into neat squares, and wisps of steam rise from the shimmering water, as if veiling the farmland and woodland in a soft white veil. Flower fairies, bathed in sunlight, have incredibly bright hair and eyes, and they even carry magic wands!
"This is the land of sin...this is the land of sin!" Papame's voice trembled with excitement. She bit her finger hard and grinned, "By the Goddess of Flowers! I'm not dreaming, I haven't ascended to the divine realm, I'm still alive, it's real, it's real!"
Dedean was already in tears.
Sitting in her mother's lap, Papawi didn't understand what was happening. Now she could drink a bowl of sweet soup every day. The baby's short stubble had now fallen smoothly to the side of her face. She stretched out her hand, wanting to catch the gentle breeze coming towards her.
A warm breeze, carrying the sunlight, caressed her cheeks. Shu Xin stood on the terrace listening to Nono's report. She stroked the fur of the magical cat in her arms, lost in thought: "Lantata City... that's a city in the south, isn't it? Were the caravans given us the coordinates of the Land of Sin...?"
“Yes, Your Highness, Lantata City is one of the ten major cities in the south. I have already found out that the Sapphire Caravan provided them with the coordinates of the Land of Sin,” the dedicated official replied.
“The Sapphire Caravan did a great job,” Shu Xin said. “As a reward, when they return to the Land of Sin, each member of the caravan can have a high-level magic wand custom-made for free. Didn’t we just exchange for a batch of magic ore recently? Take out the sapphires from it and let them choose whatever they like.”
Nonori agreed, but after a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Sapphires are very precious magical materials. Are you rewarding them like this to encourage the caravan to spread rumors about the Land of Sin?"
Shu Xin hummed in agreement, put down the magical cat in her arms, and watched Daisy jump off the terrace and run towards the lake island where the little snow elephant was. For some reason, Daisy seemed to be very interested in the little snow elephant.
Turning her gaze away, Shu Xin looked at Nuonuo Li: "That family traveled all the way to this land of sin... Did you ask them why?"
Nonori nodded: "It's because the magic tax in Lantata City is too heavy, and they can't afford it."
“I think that’s why,” Shu Xin sighed. “I asked Peng Peng’an, and the magic tax has been increasing in recent years. He even received a magical message a few days ago saying that there are new regulations for the magic tax, and the magic tax paid in each harvest month cannot be less than the amount paid in the previous harvest month.”
Nono pursed her lips and remained silent.
“Time flies… it’s harvest season again soon,” Shu Xin said with a sigh. “I don’t know what His Majesty the King is planning, but I do know that if things continue like this, the flower fairies will really starve to death in their own fields.”
...Not necessarily. If she's lucky, she might survive as a slave. Shu Xin let out a soft breath and made her decision:
"That's settled then. Notify all the caravans to learn from the Sapphire Caravan and spread the word about the tax policies of the Land of Sin. As long as commoners are willing to go to the Land of Sin to work for the Flower Fairy, they can receive a partial reduction in magic tax. If they perform well, it won't be a problem to exempt them from their share of magic tax."
Such a tax policy was too bold and offensive, almost like a provocation against His Majesty the King's latest decree. Nonori, who was always very cautious, did not object. The earth-shaking changes in the Land of Sin had already proven Shuxin's ability. He nodded in agreement and turned to leave the terrace.
Shu Xin silently gazed into the distance.
You can't see anything from here, since the Land of Sin is located in the northernmost part of the Kingdom of Ganar, while the Royal City is located in the southernmost part of the Ganar Plain, and even borders the human sphere of influence directly.
Shu Xin could not fathom the king's thoughts and intentions, but she knew clearly that at this moment, she had clearly taken a stand against the king.
"I hope to see you later, Your Majesty," Shu Xin prayed sincerely. "As late as possible, by the goddess of flowers."
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