Chapter 240 The most beautiful and sexy lover is forever...
As dawn broke, I got out of my messy bed, and a muscular, alluring, naked man embraced me from behind. "I thought you'd be like a princess, not getting up until late in the morning."
"I want to, but I don't dare." I turned back and smiled sweetly at him. "I'm afraid that if I get up late and miss important matters, I'll be beheaded."
"How could that be?" The handsome man chuckled in disbelief.
How could I not? If I miss one important matter this time, I'll miss another one next time, and the time after that, and I'll keep making the same mistakes. Wouldn't that risk my life? But I didn't explain. I just smiled at him again, put on my thin veil and got out of bed. "You should go."
He looked aggrieved. "I never expected you to turn your back on me like this."
I laughed loudly, "No, no, how could that be? I recognize you, I've always recognized you."
He smiled, then said nothing more.
The torn clothes and overturned sheets scattered on the floor were a testament to the revelry of the previous night.
I couldn't resist the temptation and we had a passionate encounter.
It's said that the most popular handsome man in the royal city is no joke; his skills are top-notch, and his warm, moist tongue can make a person feel like they're dying and coming back to life.
I almost thought I was going to die in bed.
It's a miracle to live to see the dawn.
Goodness, it's unbearable! I screamed desperately, my voice sounding like a hoarse whisper, until I lost control and hugged him tightly, kissing him wildly, wishing I could tear him to pieces.
Exhausted, I collapsed onto the bed, repeatedly saying, "I can't do it anymore, I can't do it anymore," before he finally let me go.
A gentle morning breeze drifted in through the half-open French windows, dispersing the room's alluring and luxurious scent. He held me tightly, even as I was just dressed in my robes.
I stroked his delicate and handsome face. "Young man, your skills are truly impressive. No wonder you're so popular!"
His sharp teeth bit into my neck, his indistinct, ambiguous breaths drifting in, "Because of you, I can ignite my primal drive."
We ate breakfast together, walked together in the corridor and courtyard, and everyone knew he was my new lover.
The most beautiful and sexy lovers always belong to the victors in a power grab.
And the winner can be either male or female.
We parted ways after crossing the courtyard and arriving at the council chamber. I went inside for the meeting, while he went to the hunting grounds for his daily exercise.
In the noisy council hall, I unfolded a large map of the western border and explained my "befriend distant states while attacking nearby ones" strategy to the high-ranking nobles.
"For distant capitals and tribes, we adopt a friendly diplomatic strategy, sending gifts and beautiful women; for those nearby, we launch direct attacks."
A nobleman raised a question: "War and gift-giving are both very expensive. Who will pay for them?"
I smiled faintly, "Anyone can contribute; the royal city belongs to everyone."
This completely baffled the nobles. What did it mean that anyone could pay?
"It wasn't easy for our Great Royal City to become independent. We are the only ones on the entire continent; all the other royal cities have been annexed by kingdoms. If we want to remain independent, we must consolidate our strength. If our strength declines, we will only face death. Consolidating our strength and expanding our territory is one way. Of course, you can also be greedy for short-term gains, hoard your money, and not spend a single penny. When the city falls, all the family's wealth will flow into the hands of outsiders."
One of the nobles sneered, "Don't try to scare us! Our royal city has been independent until today because of our strength. What's wrong with our strength?"
“That’s right, you just want us to spend money!” another nobleman chimed in.
Some nobles laughed, "Do you think we're three-year-olds?"
With a wave of my right hand, the guards brought out a thick stack of scrolls and placed them on the conference table, filling the entire table.
"This is the history of the rise and fall of kingdoms, capitals, and tribes on this continent. I spent several nights compiling it. You can read it and see which capital wasn't once at its peak before being annexed by the kingdom, and which tribe was once extremely powerful, with fierce leaders and people, but was later either swallowed up by the capital or the kingdom. They were all as blindly confident as you are, underestimating their enemies, and in the end, they all lost their lives or became prisoners."
Another nobleman was furious, saying, "Don't we know more about what's happening on this continent than you do? You don't need to point fingers here."
"Exactly, where are you from? Putting aside the fact that you're a superpowered woman, even if you were a local woman, you don't get to decide what's going on in this war."
Simply put, there are still many respected old nobles here, so you won't be in a position to make important decisions.
The nobles started talking amongst themselves, all pointing the finger at me. I wasn't angry; I just sat there quietly listening. One noble even pointed a finger at my forehead, but I didn't get angry or even flinch.
The meeting yielded no results. After it adjourned, I summoned my bodyguards. These bodyguards were originally Lytia's men, but I had bribed them. I secured their loyalty with a high price.
"Go and investigate these people's confidants, mistresses, or lovers." I pointed to several names in the meeting minutes.
A few days later I received feedback and acted swiftly. I offered high prices or a way to resolve their troubles so that the old nobles' confidants, mistresses, or lovers would whisper in their ears and persuade them to agree to my plan.
About two weeks later, the old nobles' tone softened noticeably, and they were no longer sarcastic during the morning meetings. I knew the time was right, and I said, "I know everyone is worried about money; war is extremely expensive, but I'm about to introduce a policy to benefit the people." As I spoke, I gestured to the maids to hand out sheets of paper. "These sheets record the number of prisoners in our capital's prison, including both commoners and nobles, with a significant number of nobles. My policy is to allow nobles and commoners to avoid punishment by paying a fine. Once the full amount is paid, they can be released that same day. All of these fines will be used for our capital."
The Great City has been established for hundreds of years, and its criminal law has always been harsh. Many people are imprisoned there, and the sentences are long, generally starting at three years with no upper limit. As a result, the prison is full of people, and every now and then it has to be cleared out, with minor offenders being put in cowsheds or stables.
“This will embolden the prisoners,” a nobleman cried out. “What if they commit crimes again after they get out?”
“If you commit another crime after you get out, you’ll be arrested again,” I said. “You can only get out after paying five times the fine. If you commit another crime after you get out, you’ll be fined ten times the fine. If you can’t pay the fine, you stay in there. If you can pay it, you’ll donate the money to the royal city.”
An unusual silence fell over the council chamber, as several elderly nobles whispered among themselves. Suddenly, one of them asked, "Then who is responsible for managing these fines?"
“It can be managed by several families, just like the management of the straight road. Every now and then, I will come with the other families to check the accounts and jointly ensure that the fines are correct,” I said calmly.
The old nobles exchanged glances, some with shrewd glints in their eyes. Even the most stringent surveillance systems have loopholes. They'll always find a way to skim off some money.
If they don't catch much, I can turn a blind eye; after all, too much water has no fish. But if they catch too much, I will take action to take it back.
“Your Excellency, please allow us to consider this,” an old nobleman said slowly.
"Such a significant matter should certainly be given more consideration," I said.
Two days later in the council chamber, I used a roll-call vote to vote on the fine policy—it passed almost unanimously.
The fine policy was officially launched, and a considerable amount of money was raised in a short period of time. I quickly transferred the money to another treasury. Before these nobles could figure out how to embezzle it, I had to quickly secure this money to avoid delaying my "befriending distant states while attacking nearby ones" strategy.
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