ryethenovel Chapter 99 Life Tax
Chapter 99 Life Tax
Chapter 99 Life Tax
"My lord!" Tokugawa Koji said with some concern as the man left, "Isn't this—"
"Isn't this a bit inappropriate?" Xia Jie interrupted Tokugawa Koji before he could finish speaking. "These barbarians are like dogs, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, and they know best how to assess the situation. Today I made them kneel, and they knelt. If I show the slightest weakness or flaw in the future, they will be the first to pounce and tear me apart. Therefore, the only way to deal with them is to always maintain absolute strength and an invincible posture."
"Besides, are these barbarian tribes truly sincere? They're probably just hedging their bets! Otherwise, why would they secretly form an alliance, afraid to make it public? They're nothing but double-dealers!"
Interrupted by Xia Jie, Tokugawa Koji was startled and quickly bowed, pleading for forgiveness: "This humble one is foolish and failed to understand Your Majesty's profound meaning. Please punish me!"
Xia Jie waved his hand, indicating that it was alright: "I know you are loyal. But you must understand that my Xia dynasty was founded on the way of the king. I am the one chosen by Heaven to rebuild a land of peace and prosperity. Those foreign barbarians, no matter what, are still not free from barbarity. To deal with them, appeasement is useless, benevolence is ineffective; only absolute tyranny can make them docile."
Besides, these barbarians are dispensable to me.
Tokugawa Koji suddenly realized his mistake and quickly said, "Your Majesty is wise! It was my oversight. The people are not enlightened enough to understand Your Majesty's divine authority, let alone carry out Your Majesty's will. A special agency can be established to handle matters concerning foreign domains!"
"Hmm." Xia Jie nodded slightly, somewhat satisfied with the reaction. "This matter will be entrusted to you. Select quick-witted, capable, bold, and meticulous individuals to serve as your eyes and ears. Establish another office; its name, as for..."
He pondered for a moment, a cold glint of imperial brilliance flashing in his eyes: "Let it be called the Four Barbarians Pavilion. Remember, the sole purpose of this institution is to carry out my will and handle all matters related to foreign nations. All foreign envoys must adhere to the new system of our Xia Dynasty in their audience etiquette, document format, and conversational demeanor, and must not transgress it! As for the principle, there is only one: accept any benefits offered by the other party, and promises are optional. Whether or not they are kept will depend on my will at that time."
Jun Nakajima heard the knocking and opened the door in annoyance!
The island of Shikoku was occupied by King Jie of Xia, who established the state of Xia and forced all its inhabitants to become his slaves.
But what does it matter to Jun Nakajima? He's just an otaku, after all! For him, it's just a change of power, with little real impact.
He has no sense of national identity, and he harbors no deep hatred for Jie, the destroyer of his country! He thinks of enduring for the sake of the country, and then prays for Japan to reclaim its territory.
I don't want to curry favor with this new king, since he doesn't seem particularly wicked anyway! In that case, being a law-abiding citizen isn't so bad; even if the sky falls, there are taller people to hold it up!
Even if a real war breaks out, King Jie would probably lead the charge! Even if he doesn't, there are still ghost soldiers, so it has nothing to do with him.
As the door opened, sunlight streamed into the dark room, making Jun Nakajima's eyes feel a little uncomfortable.
The visitors were officials from the Xia Kingdom. Although they had not long ago been officials from the Nihong Kingdom, and because the Xia Kingdom had only been established for a short time, their clothing was still the same as before!
"Hello! Is there anything I can help you with?" Jun Nakajima asked timidly, just wanting to get rid of these annoying people as soon as possible!
The other party took out a piece of paper and handed it over, saying, "The new Xia dynasty has been established, abandoning the old system and implementing the elegant policies of the new dynasty!"
Here is your tax form. Sign it if there are no problems!
Nakajima Jun blankly accepted the so-called tax bill, which was essentially a contract: to survive in the Xia Kingdom, one needed to pay for twelve days of lifespan! Although the contents were drafted, neither party had signed it!
Jun Nakajima read it twice, even rubbing his eyes, and really wanted to say, "Are you kidding me?"
Taxing me is one thing, but taxing my lifespan? That's outrageous! Can this thing be transferred? Or do you think that even if I sign this contract and abide by it, what difference will it make?
"If there are no objections, please sign here! If you don't sign, it will be considered as resisting tax payment!" Clearly, there were quite a few people who shared Nakajima Jun's attitude, so the other party just gave a mechanical reply!
Jun Nakajima thought about it for a moment, and thought, "It's just a 1/30 life tax! You can have it if you want!"
After all, although the consequences of refusing to pay taxes were not explained, Jun Nakajima did not want to try it.
Because this new king is not good-tempered, refusing to pay taxes might get you killed! You might not even have the chance to become a ghost soldier.
If it's true, it's only twelve days less to live a year. If it's false, it's just a joke by the new king. Since we're under his roof, we might as well try to make him happy.
"As long as I sign, you won't contact me again for the next year, right?"
The other party nodded. "I'm not sure, but it shouldn't bother you because of this! After all, with Xia Xinli in charge, the right to interpret the law belongs to the Xia King! There's always the possibility of new taxes!"
Jun Nakajima didn't want any complications, so he readily signed the contract!
After signing the absurd "life tax" contract, Jun Nakajima felt inexplicably uneasy, but more than that, he felt a numb sense of "whatever, it's done." He handed the signed contract to the expressionless official, who carefully checked the signature, then put the contract away, turned and left without a word, heading to the next household.
The door closed, and the room returned to its dim light. Jun Nakajima sat back down at his computer, the flickering anime girls on the screen seemingly unable to completely dispel the strange feeling in his heart. He subconsciously touched his arms and cheeks, but didn't feel anything special; he felt neither suddenly aged nor fatigued from a loss of energy.
"It really was a scam—or some kind of psychological test? A deterrent tactic?" he muttered, trying to convince himself. "There are twelve days in a year, and if you spread it out over each day, you can't really feel it. Maybe it's just that tyrant who's bored and came up with some new way to control people's minds."
However, a subtle, indescribable emptiness lingered deep within him, as if something extremely small yet undeniably present had been quietly ripped from his life. This feeling was vague, more like a psychological effect.
In the following days, the streets and alleys of Arisu, Shikoku Island, were abuzz with discussions about the life tax.
Most of those who signed the contract, like Jun Nakajima, were skeptical, or simply thought it was just a formality.
Of course, a few people vehemently opposed the move and refused to sign, but soon tax collectors composed of ghost soldiers came to persuade them, and their methods were certainly not gentle.
After witnessing the fate of several stubborn rebels, most people had no choice but to sign their names.
The wave of resistance was quickly quelled. This was partly due to Xia Jie's absolute military power, and partly because the cost of this lifespan tax was indeed insignificant, or even had little impact, on individuals in the short term.
Many people accepted this absurd new rule with the mindset of "better to avoid trouble than to suffer misfortune" and "it's better to avoid trouble."