The world doesn't need succubi to save it.

"This is... a record of offerings to the church?"

boom.

She laid it out on the table, randomly flipped to a page, and heard Ning Feng muttering to himself.

He was reading the above record, or rather, a memoir:

“I am Ross Hikaran, the thirteenth patriarch of the Hikaran family. This is the proudest thing I have ever done in my seventy-year career.”

"In the 24th year of the Ceylon calendar, the noble church asked us to offer three times more tribute than in previous years to celebrate the centenary of the appearance of God on earth."

"It's tough! But that won't break us."

"The Hikaran family, upholding the fine traditions of the Golden Age, will never give up! I hereby swear in the temple, in my capacity as patriarch and with the dignity of my noble family, that I will definitely complete this challenge!"

The writings of this Roth patriarch of the Hikaran family are filled with strong self-confidence, the pride of being a nobleman, and an unwavering belief in the face of difficulties.

“Taking this opportunity, I issued a notice in the name of God and the Church, increasing taxes in all territories fivefold.”

"Because I know very well that those cunning and despicable lowly people will not be able to complete their task no matter how much mercy I show or how generous the conditions I offer."

"A bunch of lowly people! Worms in the dark corners! Rats that only know how to gnaw on grain!"

"They have no morals whatsoever, they only ever think about taking shortcuts, and they can only collect 60 or 70% of the taxes each year."

“Then I’ll increase it to five times. As long as they can complete 60%, that will be enough for me to deliver to the church.”

Ross felt proud, moved by his own cleverness, and incredibly proud and elated.

"As expected, everything is just as I thought."

"Although there were four or five untouchable riots in the months leading up to the announcement, those voices disappeared after the bodies of all the participants were nailed to racks and paraded through other villages."

"As for the families of those sinners, I, being magnanimous, did not convict them of the same crime, as that would have been far too bloody and barbaric!"

"But while the death penalty may be waived, punishment is inevitable; those who make mistakes must pay the price!"

"For those people, I simply doubled the tax on top of the original amount. No matter what means they use, as long as they can make up the difference by the end of the year, I will pretend that nothing happened."

"Otherwise, I will take back the land and sell it all to slave traders."

"Speaking of which, I have to admit to one of my bad habits—I'm just too kind!"

"I actually gave them a chance to atone for their sins!"

Ross was deeply moved. He felt that there were too few nobles like him in this era who were generous and compassionate towards the people. The rest were just a bunch of brutes who only knew how to rule with bloodshed.

"However, what made this challenge even more difficult was the unexpected incident in the second half of the year."

"A sudden snowfall covered ninety percent of the territory in white. Although it looked beautiful in the castle, it was not good for the harvest that year."

"But this still did not stop us from moving forward!"

The heavy snow did not break Hikaran's fighting spirit; on the contrary, it aroused his competitive spirit.

“I personally led the guards to clear the heavy snow in the solemn place and distributed a large amount of food to the disaster victims so that they could get through the most difficult time.”

"I'll treat the distributed grain as an advance payment for next year, and I'm even mercifully waiving the interest on it!"

Ross was smug about his shrewdness and adaptability.

"Although the process was difficult and there were many obstacles, the Hikaran family still paid the full amount of tribute required by the church that year."

"I, Ross Hikaran, withstood the pressure! Overcame countless difficulties! And finally succeeded in upholding the dignity of the Hikaran family!"

What follows is a lengthy self-praise and endless praise from later generations for the great achievements of their ancestors.

The man stopped reading and, after a moment of silence, asked the waiter to bring two books.

It is written in a book:

In the 24th year of the Ceylon calendar, the territory of Hikaran was hit by a blizzard, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths and injuries, and the grain harvest was only 30% of that of previous years.

The other one is:

In the 24th year of the Ceylonian calendar, the export of slaves from the territory of Hecaran increased dramatically, reaching fifteen times that of the previous year.

[Due to the impact, slave prices plummeted, but many people still sold their families to slave traders.]

A male adult can only be sold for one-third of its original price, while a female can only be sold for one-half.

Slave traders refused to accept children, and families unable to afford to support them would sell the children along with the adults at a low price.

[...or, kill him with your own hands.]

……

……

The memories before her continued; she could still see Ning Feng's memories, but at the same time, she could also see Ning Feng's figure standing in front of her.

Ning Feng looked into the other person's golden eyes and spoke indifferently:

"And in this book, on this bookshelf, in this city... such things are everywhere."

"They showed no remorse for their actions."

"They never felt they had done anything wrong."

"Because from the beginning, they did not treat those people as human beings like themselves, but as cargo, as animals in their territory."

Ning Feng's voice remained calm and gentle, without any anger, but it contained undisguised amusement and mockery.

"Moreover, all they regretted before they died was that they had chosen the wrong side."

"Tell me, how should I deal with these people? Should I let bygones be bygones?"

"Or should we act like a pastor, giving them a chance to reform as long as they are willing to repent?"

He looked at her and asked in confusion:

Why should I give them a chance to atone for their sins?

laugh.

Ning Feng smiled.

He laughed mockingly.

"I understand, you must have been joking before, right?"

Chapter 505 Anger

Ning Feng knew perfectly well whether the other party was joking or not.

The previous questioning and the current confusion are both telling Ning Feng one thing.

The other party was completely unaware of all this; it was the first time they had ever learned of it.

But it was precisely because he knew the other party wasn't joking that he became even more...angry.

Like a king deep within the palace, only able to hear the delusions of treacherous ministers, indulging in the beautiful fantasy of a peaceful world.

She always remained aloof and never once looked down at anyone.

Even just one glance!

"Madam, why are you silent?"

"Don't you find your question a little ridiculous?"

"I will take your silence as a yes."

Forgive them? Give them a chance for redemption?

"I give them a chance, but who gives those poor people a chance?"

A godlike being!

Your question is utterly ridiculous!

Taking another step forward, Ning Feng asked with a smile, gazing into the other person's eyes.

Even as he gazed at that pure gold, feeling the pain of his soul beginning to burn and melt, he did not look away.

Golden light also shone in Ning Feng's eyes.

However, it wasn't divinity, but rather an almost overflowing emotion.

That was anger.

Ning Feng was furious.

This was an emotion that would have been impossible for him in the past, but now it filled his heart.

For the sake of those poor, tragically killed people?

They have been gone for hundreds of years, and even if we erect monuments and pray for them now, it will not improve the past.

The oppressors who rode on their heads have long since passed away, and there is no point in digging them up from their graves and whipping their corpses now.

Dust to dust, ashes to ashes?

They're already dead?

Now that the descendants of the golden bloodline have been wiped out, which can be considered revenge for those poor people, can everything be forgiven?

impossible……

Absolutely impossible!

In those tragic stories, the nobles certainly played the evil role, revealing their darkness and depravity.

But are the nobles who act as oppressors the only villains?

No.

Who decided that there can only be one villain in a story?

“I have a new question… In those stories, what role do you think the Church of God played?”

Church of God.

"Did they extend a helping hand to the people suffering in dire straits? Or did they bring the wicked nobles to justice and let the gods punish them?"

"No! They are not as kind as they claim to be."