In fact, it’s not to blame that Suldak felt that the town’s accounts were somewhat false.
The establishment of this cavalry battalion made him realize how rich some seemingly ordinary nobles in the city really were.
In the horse market, an ancient Bolai horse is worth 20 gold coins. At best, these more than a thousand gold coins are only enough to buy more than 60 war horses. Think of the Goss family ranch in Kilan Town. It is said that there are seven or eight horses grazing in the pasture.
Each horse herd must have at least several hundred Gubo horses. Calculated in this way, it is a private property of at least tens of thousands of gold coins.
It is estimated that there should be some nobles with such financial resources in Duodan Town.
Although I knew that the plane territory was a typical one where the people were rich and the country was weak, I never thought that the town hall of Duodan Town would be in such financial straits.
Mrs. Luna curled her lips secretly, held the account book and complained:
“Everyone’s salary has not been paid this month, so we only have this money.”
She glanced at Suldak secretly, and seeing that he still looked incomprehensible, she explained:
“The tax revenue in the town has never been very good. Large transactions are done by trading houses, but they rarely file tax returns.”
“The town’s income usually relies on business taxes from shops, and this tax revenue is basically brought by the adventure group.”
“In addition, there is a population tax for town residents and a land transaction tax, but who is willing to come to this enclosure recently?”
“At this time, the adventure groups are gradually leaving Duodan Town, and the tax revenue is even less than one-third of the usual level. In the past two months, the town’s income cannot even sustain daily expenses...”
Just as he was talking, everyone had arrived in a lounge. The room was not big, and there was a small bed inside. A fat man with a tired face was lying on the narrow small bed. He was only wearing white linen underwear and pants.
He was wearing a white shirt and two carrot-like thighs. His legs were now a purple color and he was groaning in pain on the bed.
Two women and several young men and women gathered around the window. They seemed to be the tax official's family. Their clothes were all made of silk. Although the tax official was not an aristocrat, he should be among the common people.
of wealthy families.
A maid was rubbing the tax collector's legs, but the situation didn't look promising. His legs were covered with purple bruises, which was a bit scary to think about.
Suldak came forward.
When the tax collector's wives saw Surdak, they didn't know who he was, but they recognized the noble badge on his chest. They stood up quickly, their eyes full of grievances, and they almost grabbed Surdak and cried.
It’s time to make decisions for the people.
Mrs. Luna pointed to the tax collector lying on the bed and introduced Suldak: "This is Batra, the tax collector of our town."
She whispered to Tax Collector Batra: "This is the new commander of the cavalry battalion, Baron Surdak."
The tax collector Batra closed his eyes tightly and refused to speak a word.
Someone wisely moved a chair for Surdak, and Surdak sat down next to Batra tax collector and said to him calmly: "I came to see you, and I didn't want to ask any questions from you.
You don’t need to be so nervous about Marco’s whereabouts, but the rope that binds you is a little tight. If you don’t receive treatment, the muscles in your legs will slowly die. Only by sawing them off from here can you save your legs.
Life."
As he spoke, he stretched out his hand and made a gesture at the base of Batra’s tax collector’s thigh.
The tax collector Batra was so frightened that he suddenly opened his goldfish-like eyes and stared straight at Surdak, trying to see some flaws in Surdak's eyes.
The family members of the Batra tax collector standing aside were frightened when they heard what Surdak said.
Suldak said calmly: "I think you don't want to die that much. I just happen to be able to help you in this regard."
The tax collector Batra lay silent on his little bed.
Surdak did not continue to ask, and waited for a moment. The room was so dull that it seemed as if time had stopped. Only Batra's two wives were sobbing softly. The older children gathered around their mother, and the younger ones were so frightened that their eyes were closed.
Staring wide, he kept trying to hold his brother's hand.
Just when Surdak stood up and was about to leave, Tax Officer Batra's eyes dimmed and his voice was hoarse and weak and he said:
"You all please go out and wait for a while. I have something to say to Commander Surdak."
When Tax Officer Batra said this, Mrs. Luna scanned the room with her eyes again, and everyone in the room left, closing the door at the same time.
“Commander, what do you want to ask me?” Tax Officer Batra tried to force out a smile, but his smile turned out to be uglier than crying.
Suldak looked at him without saying anything, and just kept staring at him until he felt a little guilty.
The tax collector Batra asked tentatively: "Can you really heal my leg?"
“Of course.” Surdak glanced at him and replied.
He opened his palm, and a ball of light was beating like a burning flame.
Batra tax collector hesitated for a moment. He looked at his legs that had become numb and asked tentatively:
“What do you want to know?”
Suldak was just a little curious and had no specific questions. He dropped a ball of holy light on the Batra tax collector's legs. The swollen legs actually continued to swell and fade at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Soon Tax Collector Batra felt as if countless steel needles were piercing the skin of his legs.
He screamed out in pain.
“Be patient, if you want fresh blood to flow through the dry blood vessels again, you need to bear the pain.”
Suldak stared intently at the white light in the palm of his hand, and kept pouring it into Batra's tax collector's leg.
Batra Tax Collector took a deep breath, covered his mouth with his hand, and tried not to make a sound.
His face was red from suppressing his emotions, and his forehead was covered with beads of sweat.
Suldak discovered that the therapeutic effect of the Holy Light spell on reducing swelling and eliminating congestion was more significant than the treatment of sword wounds. Even if his legs looked like they were about to die, they could be healed quickly by the Holy Light spell.
After a while, Tax Collector Batra felt that his legs and legs had really regained feeling. He was lying on the bed as if he was soaked. He was so weak that it was difficult to speak.
He was always staring at Surdak.
Suldak sat down on the chair again and said:
"I think all you have access to is the tax revenue of Duodan Town. What I want to know is only the real tax revenue of Duodan Town. I have to find out who swallowed up the military equipment funds and warehouses of the city defense brigade. Where are the supplies in there?”
The tax collector Batra shook his head slightly and said in a low voice:
“There wasn’t much military supplies in the warehouse to begin with, and they’ve all been taken out little by little over the years.”
After saying that, he smiled bitterly and said:
“The last thing left is to deal with the last appearance of the Director of Munitions.”
"You are here, ready to take over the city defense brigade. They say you have a good background. Marco plans to transfer the last military supplies that belong to the town. After taking over the city defense brigade for so many years, he may have forgotten that the warehouse can There was nothing, but he couldn't take out the things stored in the warehouse, so he did exactly that, and was caught by the mercenaries of the trading company."
“Originally, I wanted to use the supplies recently supplied by the munitions department to fill this hole, but at this time... there is no time to do anything.”
“The mayor was worried that all the wealth he had worked so hard to save over the years would be thrown out, so he ran away with the donation.”
Suldak felt that even if the current annual income of Wall Village should not be more than a thousand gold coins, let alone a border town close to the World of Warcraft Forest, he asked: "Would Duodan Town only have only one thousand gold coins every year?"
The tax is more than a thousand gold coins, right?"
Tax officer Batra shook his head again and said: "The actual amount may be a little more than this, but it is not as much as you think. The trading company is only willing to pay one-tenth of the tax payable, and many adventure groups are
I’m used to selling Warcraft materials to trading houses.”
“Marco didn’t want to take you with him?” Suldak asked curiously.
Batra glanced outside the door, with a trace of reluctance in his eyes, and said with a sad face: "Are you leaving? Where can I go? Besides, my home is still here. Besides, although I knew it, I didn't reach out.
I'm just a little tax collector."
Suldak walked out of the hut.
The family members of Tax Collector Batra rushed into the hut impatiently, and soon there was a muffled cry in the house.
Suldak said to Mrs. Luna: "These days when the mayor is away, you will be responsible for handling the daily chores in the town. I think you will handle it well, right?"
“Of course, I will.”
Mrs. Luna stood in the reception hall of the town hall and assured Suldak.
…
For Aung San these days, the town of Dodan is undergoing earth-shaking changes every day, which makes him a little overwhelmed.
He walked into the cavalry camp, and the guard at the door just nodded to him, motioning for him to hurry in, and warned in a low voice: "Don't mess around when you go in, the commander is waiting for you at the door of the small building."
The military camp is not too big, and the small building is also very eye-catching. Aung San saw Surdak sitting on the steps in front of the small building at a glance.
A ray of setting sun shone on his face, casting a golden light on his handsome face.
Although Aung San hesitated in his steps, he finally stepped forward firmly.
“Commander, are you looking for me?”
Aung San bowed to Surdak.
Suldak seemed to wake up from his meditation, turned to Aung San and said gently:
“Well, take me to Invercargill Monster Forest tomorrow.”
Aung San said cheerfully: “Oh, okay.”
There were two people in front of the small building. One was sitting on the steps and the other was standing respectfully aside.
Suldak seemed to remember something and suddenly said: "Today I saw a young man named Latu in the city defense brigade, who looks a bit like you."
“That’s my brother.” Aung San admitted.
Suldak nodded, thinking that Latu had the skills to repair crossbows, and said: "The young man is not bad, let him work hard, and I will let him stay in the guard brigade if there is a chance."
Suldak said this, which shows that he wants to promote Latu.
Because in the city defense brigade, only squadron leaders and above are considered to have official positions. The other city defense guards, including squad leaders, are all young people serving in the military.
Aung San glanced at Surdak and said hesitantly: "He can't be a squadron leader."
Suldak did not comment, looked back at Aung San and asked:
“Are you familiar with Mayor Marco? I want to know something about him, both good and bad.”
Aung San scratched his head in embarrassment and explained with a wry smile: "He is the mayor of Dodan Town. Aboriginal people like me cannot get in touch with him, but I know who knows him best."
“He is willing to tell me?” Surdak asked with a smile.
He didn't want to force others to tell him about Mayor Marco.
He was just a little curious about what kind of person Mayor Marco was.
"I should be willing. After all, he is also your subordinate." Aung San smiled a little proudly and said directly: "He is Jeremy, the warehouse manager of the City Defense Brigade. He and Mayor Marco have known each other for a long time. They are both
The immigrant who came from Bena City is said to be from the same hometown, and he even helped Mayor Marco back then."
Suldak thought of the fat man running back and forth in the city defense brigade, and said: "Okay, I will send someone to find him."
…
Administrator Jeremy was shocked when he received the news that Commander Suldak wanted to see him.
Even if he had any evidence of his crime, there was no reason to invite him over so politely.
I rushed to the garrison camp anxiously and saw Surdak sitting in front of a small building. He stood far away and gave Surdak a military salute. However, his fat belly made his body look out of shape, and his movements were not so standard.
Suldak looked up at him and simply said: "Tell me about Mayor Marco."
Jeremy walked over and looked at Suldak with some confusion, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Suldak waved to Jeremy so that he could sit down and talk, and said: "Just tell me about Marco's past. I'm a little curious about how he got to where he is now."
Jeremy sat down at the bottom of the steps, and Suldak handed him a glass of ale.
Warehouse manager Jeremy hesitated for a moment, but took it anyway, drank a big gulp of wine, and took a break from drinking. His face suddenly became much redder, and his eyes became brighter.
Perhaps it was the alcohol that emboldened him, he sighed and recounted Mayor Marco’s previous life:
“He and I were almost the same group of immigrants who came here.”
“Of course, at that time we didn’t come here simply to dedicate our youth to the empire. Everyone came to this border town for different reasons.”
"He is a down-and-out nobleman in Bena City. He has neither meritorious service nor territory. As a third-class baron, if he doesn't do something, his son will become a knight if he gets married and has children in the future. But as long as he is in Bai Lin's position,
If he manages a border town for about ten years, he may be rotated to Bena City in the future... If he can find a job in any neighborhood, he can still retain his title of third-class baron."
“But people will always change, especially after they have rights.”
"When he first managed Duodan Town, he was a very diligent person, and he had many ideas. He initially wanted to make Duodan Town rich. He also opened a ranch in Duodan Canyon in the north of the city, and also supported adventure groups to enter World of Warcraft.
For forest hunting, Duodan Town was pretty good at that time."
“Later, he reached out to taxation. Unfortunately, Duodan Town’s tax revenue was not very large at all. Most of the tax revenue was concealed by trading companies, and a fixed amount of money had to be spent every month to maintain the city defense brigade.”
“He has been quarreling with the trading houses in the town for so many years just to get more tax money back.”
“Many people have advised him to give up fighting for these things. The trading group in the town has a background, and there are some things that cannot be fought for.”
"But he can't look away! Behind me is Senator Campo, and the Congressman is always pressing on me. What can he do to the trading company?"
“What happens in the end? Not only do you get nothing back, but you also offend everyone.”
“Although the member of Parliament from Campo does not have the right to recommend job rotation, it is not difficult to veto him from the list. In the end, we will continue to live in this border town!”
“Human, there is no end to desires and desires!”
"When I came to Duodan Town alone, I was so simple. I had no place to live, so I lived in the town hall. Later I got some rights and built a house behind the town hall. I slept with other girls in the town. Later, I
After he got married and his wife gave birth to a child, he felt that she was not beautiful, so he married two more. After he had children, his expenses increased."
"He sent his eldest son to the Knights Academy in Wilkes City. The town's taxes were not enough, so he shipped some ordnance reserves from the city defense brigade and sold them. He stretched out his hand once and never again.
Can’t quit.”
“Actually, when the town has money, it will replenish the warehouse to some extent. No one cares about the people coming in and out. He has the final say in the whole town, so who cares!”
“Maybe I got used to it later and thought that as long as I can balance the accounts, there won’t be any problems. But how can it be so easy to balance the accounts?”
"It's just that I didn't expect that he would take his whole family and abscond in search of money. He is a noble! It's not like he committed a capital crime. There is no need for this..."