Wasser Fief's new administration was in full swing.
The newly established major departments had all begun to implement the new policies.
That morning, a convoy, so lavish it seemed out of place in all of Eisenwald, stopped in the square before the Tower under the watchful eyes of the surrounding populace.
The lead carriage was crafted entirely from precious dark wood, its body inlaid with a silver family crest. Four pure white steeds snorted restlessly.
The carriage door opened, and a foot clad in a tall boot stepped out gracefully. Following it, the smiling face of Count Leinia appeared before the crowd.
Behind her trailed a long line of servants, carrying chests.
"Lord Lacey! My friend! I've come to congratulate you!" Leinia's voice preceded her arrival.
Lacey went down to welcome her personally.
This noble, the first to extend an olive branch to him in Salem, had now come to collect the dividends on her investment.
"Welcome, Count Leinia, my friend." Lacey shook her hand, his gaze sweeping over the chests behind her.
"Just a small congratulatory gift," Leinia explained with a smile.
"Some supplies, some fabrics, and several top-tier accountants."
"I know this is what you need most right now."
Lacey did not refuse. He invited Leinia into the throne room in the Tower.
Seeing the spacious yet somewhat spartan room, a hint of astonishment flickered in Leinia's eyes, but she quickly concealed it.
"It seems Lord Lacey is practicing austerity. That is the quality of an enlightened ruler."
"I simply haven't had time to acquire such useless things," Lacey said, gesturing for her to sit.
"Wasser Fief is in ruins and needs rebuilding. Every coin must be spent where it's most needed."
"Well said!" Leinia clapped her hands in admiration.
"That is why I've brought the most capable financial team from my own fief of Salem."
"If you're willing to trust me, why not let me manage the purse strings of this territory for you?"
"I guarantee that within a month, I can make your treasury fuller than it ever was during that fool Otto's most extravagant days!"
She made no attempt to hide her ambition; what she wanted was control over Wasser Fief's finances.
Lacey looked at her.
This countess, who prioritized profit above all, may have had impure motives, but her competence was undeniable.
At this moment, the Workers' Party had experts in political propaganda, military affairs, and diplomacy.
But it lacked a true specialist in the complex fields of finance and economic management.
Moreover, he had never forgotten the help she had given the Workers' Party in Salem.
"Alright."
Lacey nodded in agreement.
"From this day forward, you are the Minister of the Department of Economy for the new government of Wasser Fief."
"The mess Otto left behind is yours to handle."
"My honor!" Leinia's smile grew even brighter.
...
Leinia wasted no time in making her mark.
With a team of capable accountants and clerks, she seized all of Otto's ledgers.
After several sleepless days and nights of work, a shocking report was placed on Lacey's desk.
"Lord Lacey, the situation is even more serious than we imagined." There was a hint of excitement in Leinia's voice.
"Otto's system of corruption wasn't limited to him and his inner circle. Nearly every major merchant, guild leader, and even some wealthy landowners in Wasser Fief were deeply involved!"
"They bribed officials in exchange for tax breaks and market monopolies, then passed the costs on to the common people."
"The wealth of every person on this list—every single gold coin—is stained with the blood of workers and peasants!"
She handed over the thick report.
Lacey picked up the report and opened it to the first page.
After a single glance, his brow furrowed deeply.
The contents of the report were appalling.
Just as Leinia had said, nearly every prominent merchant, guild leader, landowner, and mine owner in Wasser Fief was deeply enmeshed in this system of profiteering.
Appended to the report was a long list. Behind each name was a detailed record of the methods they used to bribe which of Otto's officials, and how many tax exemptions and market monopolies they received in return.
The lumber merchants' guild of Eisenwald, through bribery, monopolized the entire territory's wood supply. They raised prices threefold, leaving countless commoners unable to afford charcoal for warmth during the harsh winters.
The southern brewers' association colluded with tax collectors to pay taxes on their high-end wines at the rate for cheap ale, while small family workshops were crushed by heavy taxes and driven to bankruptcy.
Even worse, one landowner who controlled several large farms hoarded grain during a famine year, conspired with officials to create the illusion of a food shortage, and collected government relief funds while selling grain at exorbitant prices to the starving populace.
They were like a flock of greedy vultures, perched on the corpse of Wasser Fief, voraciously feasting on its flesh and blood.
And the transferred costs were ultimately borne by the people at the very bottom.
Otto's birth and death taxes were, to be sure, the final straw that broke the camel's back.
But long before that, the camel had already been gnawed to the bone by these parasites.
"I propose we establish a 'Liquidation Tax'!"
Seeing that Lacey had finished the report, Leinia excitedly put forward her proposal.
"Anyone who colluded deeply with Otto's regime and profited from his tyranny must pay a hefty liquidation tax based on their illicit gains!"
"This money can both rapidly fill our empty coffers for military development and public welfare improvements, and politically eliminate these fence-sitters. It kills two birds with one stone!"
Leinia spread her arms, her voice impassioned:
"By implementing the liquidation tax, we can seize complete control of Wasser Fief's economic lifeline in the shortest possible time! Only then will we have the capital to truly contend for control of Leithanien!"
It seemed he had thoroughly ignited this woman's ambition...
Lacey didn't respond, instead tapping his fingers lightly on the tabletop.
He was weighing the pros and cons.
Just as he was lost in thought, a soft knock came at the door of the throne room.
"Come in."
Gertrude entered and got straight to the point: "Lord Lacey, I disagree with Count Leinia's proposal."
Leinia frowned immediately.
Though they were both countesses, in her heart, she looked down on Gertrude, seeing her as nothing more than a shameless woman who had climbed the ranks through nepotism.
She said curtly, "Then pray tell, Minister Gertrude, what brilliant idea do you have? Are we to let these vampires go free?"
"It's not about letting them go. It's that we cannot use this method." Gertrude placed an intelligence report on the table.
"This is intelligence my people have gathered from the Haidenschweil and Caplania Grand Regions."
"The nobles and merchants there are watching our every move."
"They're spreading rumors everywhere, calling us 'thugs more brutal than Otto' and claiming we are 'wantonly plundering private property in the name of new policy'."
She looked at Lacey, her tone earnest. "If we really implement a liquidation tax, we will be proving these rumors true."
"It would create immense panic."
"Not just in Wasser Fief, but throughout the entire merchant class of Leithanien."
"They will see us as destroyers of order, as enemies of all property owners."
"At that point, we won't just be facing a few old nobles, but the hostility of the entire old world," Gertrude concluded.
"Sentimental drivel!" Leinia snorted.
"A bloodless new policy is just child's play! Timidity and hesitation will only make us miss this golden opportunity!"
"This is political wisdom!" Gertrude shot back, unyielding.
The atmosphere in the office instantly grew tense and hostile.
Lacey leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes in thought.
After a long moment, he opened his eyes and spoke slowly. "You both have valid points."
"However, Leinia, the name 'liquidation tax' is too aggressive and targeted. It will push even those we could have won over into the opposition."
"Gertrude's concerns are correct; we cannot make ourselves a target for all. But justice must be served."
He stood up and walked to the map.
"Therefore, I have decided we will establish a 'Special Contribution Fund'."
"Everyone on the list will be categorized according to their wealth and the degree of their association with Otto's regime, and they will pay varying amounts to the fund."
"This is not a punishment, but their duty as members of Wasser Fief to contribute to the reconstruction of this land."
"At the same time, the Department of Law will establish a special tribunal, with a jury composed of worker, peasant, and soldier representatives."
"We will publicly try the principal offenders whose crimes were heinous and have drawn the greatest public outrage! We'll make an example of them!"
"As for those who were coerced and whose crimes were minor..."
"as long as they are willing to voluntarily contribute to the fund and publicly repent, the new government can let bygones be bygones."
At this, Lacey chuckled softly.
"What we must do is unite the majority and strike at the small minority."
Although Leinia felt this plan was a bit 'soft,' she had to admit it was far more clever than simply establishing a liquidation tax.
She nodded. "I understand."
Gertrude offered no further opinion.
Just as the meeting was ending and Lacey was preparing to sign the relevant decrees, a guard rushed in, his expression panicked.
"Reporting, Lord Lacey! Outside the Tower... a large crowd has gathered outside the Tower!"
"What people?" Gertrude was immediately on alert.
"It's... it's the merchants and guild masters from the major towns in Wasser Fief!"
"They've formed a delegation, led by Jeremy Richter, the president of the Weissfort Merchant Guild!"
"They... they are demanding an immediate audience with the Elector to protest our new policies!"
Before he could finish, a clamorous uproar could already be heard from downstairs.
Lacey walked to the window and looked down.
In the square before the Tower stood a dense crowd of over a hundred people, all of them well-dressed and wearing arrogant expressions.
The man at the front, middle-aged and clad in a well-tailored velvet coat, toyed with a gold-inlaid cane in his hand, looking impatiently towards the Tower.
A cold sneer touched Leinia's lips. "It seems these parasites are bolder than we thought."
"They've delivered themselves right to our doorstep."
Lacey, however, showed no surprise at all. Instead, a playful smile appeared on his face.
He said softly, "It looks like they've come to negotiate."
The first growing pains of the new administration had arrived sooner than expected.
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