When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

#143 - Everything for existence

Standing by the window, watching Horn and his guards cross the drawbridge, Danay tilted his head back and drained the wine in the gilded goblet.

He picked up the blurred note, tore it into pieces, and threw it into the stove.

The door to the waiting room was pushed open again, and accompanied by two maids, a blonde woman in a long, front-buttoned dress gracefully entered the room.

"My dear fiancé, how did your talk with that foolish farmer go?"

"He really gave me a big surprise." Danay looked up at the woman whose veiled tower hat was three times longer than her face, and smiled wryly.

The blonde woman approached the window, watching Horn walking slowly down the street leading his horse, and whispered, "Is it difficult? Or maybe we can find someone to..."

"That won't work. He has a witch by his side, and a powerful evocation witch at that. If something happens to him, the witch going berserk would be a huge problem."

The blonde woman chuckled. "She can't possibly attack the castle, can she?"

Danay frowned and tapped the armrest of the chair. "You're far from Blackwater Bay; you haven't seen what it's like when a witch goes mad.

A disaster like the Great Fire of Border Town depends on the Father's will, but killing the two of us would be easier than you think."

The blonde woman simply shrugged indifferently.

"Bamanda, remember our previous plan?" Danay frowned. "That probably won't work. This Holy Grandson is going to leave after all."

"Is there really no way? He's quite important; the Pope specifically named him for capture."

Danay stared at the burning pieces of paper in the stove. "Let him go, to avoid a lose-lose situation."

"I think Kasti is probably behind this. He was the one accompanying this bumpkin."

"Enough. Have you discussed it with the bank?" Danay stood up irritably, picked up the wine, and poured another glass for himself and Bamanda.

Taking the glass, Bamanda took a light sip. "Craig Zov, the agent of the Holy See Bank, came to me this morning. He suggested setting the face value at 1 gold pound."

"1 gold pound? Are you sure?" Danay's eyes widened. "That's a heavy tax."

"It's not a tax; it's a bond. That small difference affects whether we can collect the money or not."

Looking Bamanda up and down as if it were their first meeting, Danay said, "I still don't understand. The money I saved up before should be enough for us, right?"

"How much money do you have? How much is this tax? My Danay, you're too kind. These commoners will turn bad if they have money."

Bamanda stepped forward and rested her head on Danay's chest. "My grandfather was so good to those citizens, but they betrayed poor old Bronov and sided with the royal family.

Guess how they obtained the charter? Guess how they came up with that huge bribe? It was through generations of tax evasion that they accumulated their treasury.

If you let them continue like this, you'll end up with the same result as my father and grandfather."

"We've already taxed them once. The situation is so volatile now. Continuing to do this won't..."

Looking at Danay's hesitant face, Bamanda smiled sweetly, but a sense of annoyance arose in her heart.

If it weren't for the family's wishes, why would she marry this bumpkin nobleman?

"If we don't, they'll take advantage of the volatile situation and become a new free city through bribery." Despite her disdain, Bamanda gently comforted Danay.

"But the means don't have to be so harsh, do they?"

"This is also part of the deal, my Danay."

Besides making money for herself, Bamanda's most important goal was to completely destroy Duke Kush's position in the hearts of the Thousand River Valley people.

Ensure that the people of Thousand River Valley will not use Duke Kush's name to cause trouble, affecting the new rule.

Just like that Joann III, Joann has been dead for nearly two hundred years, and they actually created a Joann III.

That Joann was clearly a witch and could not have descendants. Where did Joann III come from?

"I know it's part of the deal." Danay's face looked unpleasant after Bamanda said that. "But we're still here after all."

"The Elves have an ancient saying: people cannot be angry three times in a row. When the first two angers subside, they lose the ability and courage to be angry the third time."

Turning her head, Bamanda looked out the window, pointing to the commoners walking back and forth below. "Look, they were still at odds with us yesterday, but now they're honestly doing business again."

"Won't this really incite a civil uprising? Do your methods really work?"

"Compared to us French, the taxation methods of the Leia people are too backward and useless."

Bamanda finally couldn't help it. She said with contempt, "I've investigated. The Thousand River Valley pays about 60,000 to 70,000 gold pounds in taxes to the Leia royal family every year, but if I calculate, Hotham County alone can collect more than 200,000 gold pounds in taxes a year."

"The Leia Kingdom has its own national conditions." Danay, with a big belly, leaned on the chair. "The missing money has been taken away by the church and local nobles, otherwise the old Leia King would not be able to obtain the support of the church and nobles."

"But he still failed to win, didn't he?" The French noblewoman smiled mockingly. "Windmill Land is still in our French hands, and the Leia Kingdom has divided the decree chain that frightened countless people into six parts because of 2.8 million gold pounds of foreign debt."

"Yes, times have changed." Danay said sadly, "The opportunity my father and grandfather waited for a lifetime happened in this era."

"Don't be sad, my Danay." Seeing that Danay's mood was not right, Bamanda immediately sat on his lap. "All this will have nothing to do with you. Your great future has just begun."

Gently stroking the beast claw pattern on the armrest, Danay didn't speak until the city bells rang, then he sighed deeply.

Holding Bamanda's waist, pushing her up, Danay stood by the window, staring blankly at this territory that had been passed down for generations.

His grandfather died here, his father grew up here, and he was born here.

After watching for a long time, he laughed mockingly. This is not his ancestral land. His ancestral land is in Flying Stream Castle, whose former name was Fort Joan.

He had been to Flying Stream Castle, and there was no trace of the Kush family there, as strange as another world.

From Flying Stream Castle to Canal Town, from the Refrander King to Duke Kush, Danay had no room to retreat.

But the family's bloodline must always be continued, just like the Kush family's motto: "Family inheritance is our responsibility."

Surviving is more important than anything.

"Tonight, please invite the Holy See Bank's agent over. I think, to have dinner with him."

Looking down at the four rings on his left hand representing the family name, Danay adjusted the position and direction of the rings, turning them into a new family name—

Kipa.