Yefutidaolu

Chapter 304 Could it be—?
Gao Jian had naturally visited the Jin family mansion before, but this time it was much emptier, and many of the original people were gone.

The original Jin family mansion was filled with various courtyards and areas, each inhabited by many experts. Gao Jian had secretly investigated the situation when he came before, but it was only a fleeting glimpse, and he did not know the true background of the Jin family.

Now, many of the experts here have disappeared.

Gao Jian chuckled inwardly.

Others might not know, but he could easily guess the reason.

Because a million gold worth of supplies was stolen and dozens of giant beasts died, the situation at the border changed. The Jin family lost one eighth-level cultivator and three seventh-level cultivators, suffering a great loss.

Although these losses were painful for the Jin family, they were not unbearable. However, what truly enraged Jin Dafu was the delay in dealing with matters at the border.

If this matter is delayed, what will happen to the huge business deal with Youming that is worth hundreds of millions of gold?
These businesses are definitely dominated by Youming, but even if the Jin family only gets a share, they still have several million gold coins. It is precisely because of this huge profit that the Jin family is willing to invest a lot of money.

The betting itself is fine, but things have developed to this point, and it's clear that the Jin family alone can't hold on any longer. It's time for Youmingdi and Gaojian to take over.

So, Gao Jian walked casually into the Jin family's house, where Jin Dafu and Huang Chengshi were already waiting.

It was obvious that Jin Dafu and Huang Chengshi did not look well, and compared with Gao Jian's composure, they seemed somewhat uneasy.

"Mr. Gao is here." Huang Chengshi stood up immediately when he saw Gao Jian arrive.

The Ninth Realm Elder of the Netherworld approached Gao Jian as if he were an equal, and patted him on the shoulder: "Mr. Gao, you must have heard about how things have developed to this point, right?"

Gao Jian's expression immediately turned serious: "Yes, I heard that the caravan was hijacked, and the one who did it was a Grandmaster of Two Gates."

Upon hearing Gao Jian's words, Jin Dafu and Huang Chengshi exchanged a glance.

Obviously, they were all somewhat surprised.

Takami actually knew about this? Who relayed the message? Neither Youmingdi nor the Jin family did, so how did the news get out? Even if Takami has his own power, surely he needs someone to deliver the message?

No one contacted him, yet he still found out, which can only mean that... Gao Jian has some unknown methods.

Such unknown methods...that's really...uncomfortable.

“Since Mr. Gao already knows, then I will make things clear,” Huang Chengshi said. “Now that things have developed to this point, even if the Jin family can find the murderer and recover the losses, it will not be a matter of a day or two. We cannot expect the Jin family to invest such a huge amount of money again in a short period of time.”

“So, Mr. Gao, let’s start collecting taxes immediately. We can’t let things at the border get stuck here. The initial investment is already gone, and your appetite… shouldn’t be too big.” Huang Chengshi lowered his voice slightly as he said this.

He was warning that it was best for Gao Jian to stop.

That's exactly the case. Taxes should have been levied much earlier, but Gao Jian forcefully suppressed the matter, saying he would be in charge of tax collection and letting the Jin family make initial investments.

Essentially, this means that the Kim family advanced a portion of the funds, while Gao Jian misappropriated the funds that should have been invested and pocketed them.

Of course, this is how others see it.

But in reality, only Gao Jian knew that he had never intended to levy taxes in the first place, and that part of the funds was still safely in the pockets of ordinary people.

But since things have come to this point, it's only natural that Huang Chengshi needs an explanation.

If they insist on not levying taxes here, Huang Chengshi will probably put Gao Jian under house arrest, then forcibly raise Gao Jian's banner and start levying taxes.

There's nothing we can do about it. If someone with brilliant ideas doesn't know how to be tactful, then we can only help them save face.

Therefore, Gao Jian cupped his hands and said, "Then, let's begin the tax collection. Elder Huang, I just don't know how you plan to start collecting taxes?"

“It’s fine. As a local prominent family and a member of the government, the Jin family should naturally assign people to handle such matters of the court. Then, Youming will assist them and strive to complete the border tax collection within a month. What do you think, Mr. Gao?” Huang Chengshi said.

“This plan is a bit too simplistic. What about the specific details? For example, how much tax should be levied in Liangzhou, Yongning, and Anping? There’s no standard, and we don’t even know where the taxes will be collected from,” Gao Jian asked.

But this question surprised both Jin Dafu and Huang Chengshi.

No, is this student from the Imperial Academy serious?
He used to be so tactful in his actions and words, so everyone thought he was quite adept at this kind of thing. Why did he suddenly say something like that? What is he up to?
“Mr. Gao, are you joking? If so, I’m afraid I can’t keep you company.” Jin Dafu said at this moment.

The Jin family has already suffered such huge losses, yet this person is still trying to evade them? It's outrageous!
If we absolutely have to say where to levy taxes, then naturally it should be everywhere, for everyone, with all their property confiscated!
Essentially, this kind of taxation is part of the harvest. Would anyone, on harvest time, face a field full of ripe wheat seedlings and then choose to 'harvest less from this field' and 'harvest more from that field'?

That's impossible. The combine harvesters just gob up and wipe them all out, leaving not a single plant. At most, they might leave some seeds for next year so that they can be planted again later.

Therefore, in Huang Chengshi and Jin Dafu's view, Gao Jian's words at this moment clearly indicated that he did not want to cooperate! This man is really too greedy!
“Greed knows no bounds, Mr. Gao. At a time like this, we should be united against a common enemy. Now is not the time to fight for power and profit. If the border defense fails and the grasslands invade, burning, killing, and looting, we will be unable to bear the consequences,” Huang Chengshi advised Gao Jian.

Gao Jian nodded slightly: "Elder Huang, I am naturally aware of your concerns. Of course, I do not want the mission to fail either. The reason I asked this is not because I want to eat another bite, but because I want to ask what position the Taotie tribe holds in this matter. Are they being levied, or are they being taxed?" Gao Jian's sudden mention of the Taotie tribe surprised Huang Chengshi.

But Huang Chengshi immediately realized the implied meaning behind Gao Jian's words.

Is the Gluttonous Department the food on the table, or the people eating it? And is the loss of Jin Dafu truly unrelated to the Gluttonous Department? How do you plan to deal with the Gluttonous Department?
“Mr. Gao, are you suspecting that the Taotie tribe is targeting this matter? But that doesn’t make sense. The Taotie tribe and the Jin family are allies. If the Jin family did this, would the Taotie tribe really go it alone? Besides, given the current situation, it’s not something the Taotie tribe can…” Gao Jian suddenly interrupted Huang Chengshi as he was speaking.

Gao Jian reached out and stopped the other party, saying, "So, Elder Huang, when you did this, did you take a share from the Taotie Clan?"

"That's for sure. The Taotie Clan and the Jin Family share the profits, and he will definitely not be shortchanged. He has no reason to do that."

"Oh, so you mean the Gluttonous Tribe can only eat the Jin family's leftovers? Have you ever thought about whether the Gluttonous Tribe wants to sit at the table and eat?" Gao Jian said again.

Huang Chengshi chuckled, speechless: "Why should I sit at the table to eat?"

"Do the Qilin tribe and the Taotie tribe really have some huge conflict? Can't they join forces? Or is it that there isn't a single Grandmaster of the Two Passes among the foreign barbarians?" Gao Jian asked again.

After Gao Jian said these words, Huang Chengshi and Jin Dafu looked at each other for a moment. Then Jin Dafu stepped forward and said to Gao Jian, "Haha, Mr. Gao, you don't know this. Although your guesses are logically correct, you are new here and do not know the situation. It is normal to make some misjudgments."

"The lives of those four barbarian tribes are far better than those of the Hu people in the grassland royal court. They have no intention of rebelling. Outside the Divine Dynasty, the world is desolate and the Hu people can hardly survive. They can barely get by by relying on two things," Jin Dafu explained.

Gao Jian is naturally aware of these things.

So he continued, "I know these things. One is the Sharp Blade Plain. This is a species that came from the Avici Hell after the descent of the celestial beings, the opening of reincarnation, and the manifestation of hell in this world. It can grow and reproduce in a state of death and desolation, and it is also considered a spiritual material. Nowadays, the grasslands outside the Divine Dynasty are basically composed of grass leaves from the Sharp Blade Plain."

"Although it can grow and sustain the Hu people, it is, after all, something from hell. The grass of the Blade Plain is extremely sharp; rolling on the ground can slice a person into pieces. Normally, it is impossible to survive there."

"However, this is the second reason. The Hu people worship caterpillars and hope for their protection. They obtain the power of caterpillars through tattooing to make their bodies incredibly strong. As a result, even young children can survive in the Blade Plains without being cut to pieces. But because of this, their birth rate is extremely low. A tribe usually has only a few hundred thousand people, and they live in poverty with almost no luxury. Almost all their resources come from the grass and leaves of the Blade Plains."

Gao Jian spoke eloquently, explaining the reasons for the loyalty of the Four Barbarian Tribes: "Therefore, the Four Barbarian Tribes, including the Taotie Tribe, are recognized by the Divine Dynasty and can live under the protection of the Temple of Heaven, enjoying peace and tranquility, witnessing the cycle of the four seasons, and reveling in the vitality brought by the workings of heaven and earth. Thus, they are unwilling and unable to rebel. Furthermore, they hold official positions, and even have a young man in this generation who has entered the Imperial Academy. This further demonstrates that the Four Barbarian Tribes have ample reason to be loyal and no reason to rebel, right? Elder Huang, Patriarch Jin, you both think so, don't you?"

Jin Dafu nodded in agreement: "That's true, so I don't think so..."

But Gao Jian interrupted him rudely again: "Is preventing the establishment of a border post treason?"

“Of course it is, what else could it be?” Jin Dafu said.

Without a doubt, if something happens at the border because of the Taotie tribe, then the central government of the Divine Dynasty will definitely send people to wipe out the entire Taotie tribe.

They didn't even need to send anyone over; the Liangzhou aristocratic families, along with a portion of the forces from Youming Land, could annihilate the entire Taotie tribe.

Therefore, Jin Dafu believed that the Taotie tribe would never do such a reckless thing.

On the other hand, Huang Chengshi seemed to be deep in thought: "Well, to put it another way, if there is no problem at the border, and only the people who are building it have changed, then for the Divine Dynasty, nothing has changed and there will be no action. But for the Jin family, things are different."

Jin Dafu frowned: "That's possible, but they don't have the construction capabilities. Even if we send this batch of supplies to the Taotie tribe, without array masters or corresponding martial artists, they can't even implement the method of building a fortress. This is not a job that just anyone can do. You two are really overthinking it. It's absolutely impossible that the Taotie tribe did this!"

Gao Jian and Huang Chengshi were both outsiders.

However, Jin Dafu and the Jin family have stayed in Liangzhou for so long and have cooperated with the Taotie tribe for over a thousand years. The two sides have cooperated so many times that they have developed a high degree of mutual trust. In the eyes of the Jin family, Gao Jian and Huang Chengshi's concerns are nonsense and there is no need to consider these matters at all.

Therefore, in Jin Dafu's eyes, this was a reasonable concern on the other party's part, and he needed to reasonably dispel this concern and steer the situation back in the right direction, directing the blame towards the mastermind in the shadows, rather than towards his own ally.

Seeing that the topic had veered in this direction, Gao Jian pressed on, saying, "What if the Taotie tribe has that capability? If you don't believe me... why don't you go to the border and take a look?"

"What do you mean?" Jin Dafu's pupils shrank. "Lord Gao, what do you know? What did you see?"

Just now, Gao Jian has demonstrated an extraordinary 'channel'. He was in Liangzhou, yet he was able to immediately describe the battlefield situation, the Jin family's losses, and even the attackers' status as a Grandmaster of Two Passes.

It is obvious that Gao Jian must have some unknown information channels that can help him find out a lot of things. It is possible that this channel is used by the Minister of Revenue of the Divine Dynasty.

The relationship between Gao Jian and Minister Li was common knowledge, so it wasn't impossible for them to share each other's resources.

Therefore, combining the two, Gao Jian's single sentence aroused Jin Dafu's vigilance.

"Well, I didn't see the specifics, but what I do know is that construction has already begun in the Yongning area, but not all those involved are humans; there are also some alien beasts."

Jin Dafu and Huang Chengshi immediately turned to look at each other, and both saw the shock in each other's eyes.

(End of this chapter)