Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1515 - 1508: Each With Their Own Schemes

Chapter 1515: Chapter 1508: Each With Their Own Schemes

"Not tasty?" Cheng Ziang saw his awkwardness and asked, puzzled.

"No, it’s not that. The taste is a bit strange, but still quite good. It’s just that the shell is too hard to swallow," Hu Daoke waved his hand and said.

"You fool..." Cheng Ziang was speechless for a while, "What are you doing? You’re chewing on a crab with its shell intact, of course, you can’t swallow it, idiot..."

"There’s a trick to eating these insects," Luo’er took the initiative to demonstrate, saying, "Look, you have to break off its carapace first, then remove the legs and chest, and finally eat the abdomen."

While speaking, Luo’er chewed on the beetle under everyone’s watchful eyes. After tasting it carefully, he nodded and said, "Indeed, there is a strange taste, but the strangeness mainly comes from this weird dipping sauce. The insect itself doesn’t have much flavor, just full of protein."

"I can’t eat any more. You guys go ahead..." Watching the three men eat with relish, Tangmo covered his mouth, looking tired and said.

"Don’t worry about it. If you don’t eat the insects, we will. Just have some other dishes," Luo’er consoled her.

After a satisfying meal, they placed the bowls and plates at the front door for the Demon Clan people to take away. After that, no one disturbed them, and they finally had the chance to rest well and had a good sleep.

Early the next morning, just as the group was getting their equipment ready, the Demon Clan village chief had already arrived at the front door waiting. Cheng Ziang tidied up a bit and came to the front door to meet the village chief.

"What’s up, village chief, this early in the morning?" Cheng Ziang barely suppressed a yawn and asked with teary eyes.

"How was the Manor Lord’s night?" the village chief asked with concern.

"Hmm, not bad. The place was nice, and the food was okay, it’s just these insects—don’t prepare too many of them. Although the apostle can eat them, such filthy things shouldn’t be eaten all the time, right?" Cheng Ziang thought for a moment and said.

"Eh, okay, then next time we won’t serve an insect feast," the village chief agreed hastily, nodding.

"It doesn’t have to be like that. Have some, but not too much, to avoid a monotonous diet," Cheng Ziang said, waving his hand.

"Okay, okay, I’ll go arrange that," the village chief nodded and said.

"There must be something you need, village chief, don’t tell me you’re just here to say good morning," Cheng Ziang looked around, noticing that the village chief was accompanied by quite a few people.

"Actually, it’s like this," the village chief coughed, cleared his throat, and then said seriously, "the apostle is powerful, and can surely help us. We don’t ask for any blessings, but we hope the apostle can help us not to be wronged and to live a stable and peaceful life."

"Oh, are you having some sort of trouble?" Cheng Ziang immediately sensed the key point he wanted to express.

"Actually, it’s like this..." the village chief sighed and then said, "In the mountains about twenty miles outside of the town, there’s a newly established Sect called the Wuyun Sect. The Sect has many domineering experts, demanding that nearby villages and towns like us pay taxes to them. They take forty percent, one-tenth goes to the Imperial Court, and they keep the rest. We are truly suffering."

"Wait, let me get this straight..." Cheng Ziang scratched his head, looking puzzled, and asked, "Aren’t you supposed to pay taxes to the Imperial Court? How can you let a Sect like the Wuyun Sect collect taxes on behalf of the Imperial Court?"

"Alas, we have no choice. The Imperial Court only cares about collecting taxes and doesn’t care who collects them. As long as the taxes required by the Imperial Court are paid, the Court does not care if they are collected on its behalf. Some Sects do this, taking control of a large number of towns, collecting taxes in place of the Imperial Court, and then paying the Court," the village chief explained, slapping his thigh.

"The Court trusts them?" Cheng Ziang asked, puzzled.

"Some Sects are backed by the Imperial Court and are allowed to collect taxes on its behalf. Generally, it’s a Conquer-two, give-one system. Collecting two tenths, one for the Imperial Court, and keeping one. Some excessive Sects collect five or six tenths, only giving one to the Imperial Court, and keeping the rest, with the common people suffering in the end..." the village chief explained.

"Oh..." Cheng Ziang pretended to understand and nodded, but he was deep in thought. Suddenly, he came up with a question and looked at the village chief, asking, "I want to know, village chief, are you...appointed by the Imperial Court or..."

"Me? It’s the fellow villagers who have lifted me into this position, electing me as their village chief. It’s indeed a bit embarrassing..." the village chief was startled, scratching his head with an embarrassed expression.

"Local governance, eh..." Cheng Ziang nodded, mumbling to himself. Then he stared at the village chief and asked further, "If, I mean if, the Imperial Court itself sent someone down to collect taxes, could it collect the taxes it needs?"

"That, of course..." the village chief blinked his eyes, and after a moment, he nodded in response.

"So, I get it. The village chief means you want us to have a word with the Wuyun Sect, to ask them to adhere to the standard of Conquer-two, give-one, is that right?" Cheng Ziang mused.

"No, no, no, we hope that the mighty apostle can sweep away the threat of the Wuyun Sect for us..." The mayor said, startling everyone.

"Sweep away, do you mean for us to wipe out the Wuyun Sect?" Cheng Ziang asked, narrowing his eyes.

"This sect has been a menace to our town for a long time, causing deep-seated resentment among the populace. We would be glad to see them gone," the mayor said with a look of grievance.

"As apostles of our god, we do not engage in killing and exterminating sects. If we can have a proper talk, then let’s sit down and talk," Cheng Ziang said with a wave of his hand.

"What’s there to talk about with these roughians?" the mayor asked, puzzled.

"Whether they’re roughians or troublemakers, it’s not about who’s good or bad. As long as there’s a possibility to talk, we should try to avoid using violence as much as possible," Cheng Ziang said with a smile.

"What do you mean by that?" The mayor clearly didn’t catch the implication in his words.

"It’s fine, I will convey your requests to the apostle exactly as you’ve stated them. As for whether he is willing, that will depend on his inclination," Cheng Ziang said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Eh, we will definitely take good care of the apostle and ensure he is happy," the mayor quickly interjected, eager to please.

"Alright then, you prepare the feast, and I’ll go talk to the apostle to see if I can persuade him to help," Cheng Ziang said.

After sending off the mayor and his group, Cheng Ziang returned to the house and explained the situation to Luo’er.

"Is it about proxy taxation?" Luo’er pondered after listening to the explanation.

"Eh, we have to help with this, it’s clear bullying," Hu Daoke spoke with a sense of justice.

"Don’t speak nonsense if you don’t understand. The mayor is just giving one side of the story, but good thing I was cautious and asked an extra question," Cheng Ziang chided him with a glance.

"What did you ask?" Tangmo inquired, confused.

"I asked him if his position as mayor was elected locally or appointed by the Imperial Court. He told me it was a local election," Cheng Ziang said.

"Does that make a difference?" Hu Daoke asked, spreading his hands.

"It makes a big difference, as it relates to whom he is responsible to," Cheng Ziang said.

"If he is elected locally, then the mayor has to be responsible to the local community. If he is appointed by the Imperial Court, he must be responsible to the Imperial Court," Baiyue, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up to explain.

"Uh, I still don’t understand," Hu Daoke scratched his head.

"If the mayor is tasked with collecting taxes and he is appointed by the Imperial Court, he has to be responsible to the Imperial Court; no matter how difficult the local situation is, he needs to collect the taxes that the Imperial Court requires. If he is responsible to the local community, it’s only natural that he would avoid levying taxes if possible, and even if collected, he wouldn’t immediately hand them over to the Imperial Court, as he represents local interests," Cheng Ziang explained.

"Oh, I think I get it now," Hu Daoke suddenly realized.

"The Fengyu Dynasty is also a mess. Such a large country, yet it doesn’t have enough Imperial Court officials sent to the localities, even leaving the sects to be in charge of taxation," Baiyue shook her head with a sigh.

"That’s why I say, in essence, both the roughians and the troublemakers are much the same, no one should criticize the other," Cheng Ziang shrugged.

"So are we going to deal with this matter or not?" Hu Daoke asked.

"We definitely need to deal with it, but not in the way they suggested, or we might anger the Fengyu Dynasty. It would be troublesome and simply not worth it to offend the Imperial Court for these people," Cheng Ziang shrugged again.

"So what should we do?" Hu Daoke asked.

"The best course of action is to mediate. Fighting and killing is not a way to solve problems," Cheng Ziang said.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.