Lord Baby Runs A Romance Fantasy With Cash [EN]: Chapter 105

☆ Episode 106 ☆

‘Idiot. Falling for such an obvious trap?’

I hid my lips behind my fan and spoke silently, and upon understanding, Clottie’s face contorted terribly.

Yes, get more agitated.

Today is the day I tear off your mask.

At that moment, the Emperor asked me,

“I’m curious. What was the Princess’s original opinion?”

‘Original’ opinion, he says.

The Emperor had practically admitted that the proposal wasn’t mine.

I grinned and brought up the story that the Emperor would be most interested in.

“I would like to impose more taxes on the merchants in the Northwest.”

* * *

“Oh?”

The Emperor’s eyes twinkled at the word taxes.

But Clottie, who didn’t notice, seized the opportunity to add,

“My goodness, impose taxes? Does that mean you’re going to burden a region that can’t even afford to eat and is receiving relief?”

“I didn’t say I would impose taxes on people who are starving because they have nothing to eat, Miss Tarenka. I said on the merchants.”

“Isn’t that the same thing? The people who work for the merchants are from the Northwest region.”

Clottie smiled inwardly.

‘Hmph, she refuted me point by point earlier, so I wondered what kind of opinion she would bring, but taxes? Ha, suggesting taxing the poor…….’

That’s when it happened.

“How is that the same thing? You have no economic sense. Workers and merchants are completely separate. Miss Tarenka, you should devote yourself more to your studies.”

The Emperor openly rebuked Clottie.

‘What, what is this…….’

Clottie was flustered and scanned the Emperor’s expression, but the Emperor coldly turned his face away.

Luatisha smiled as she watched Clottie biting her lip.

‘The merchants may use tricks to pass the tax on to consumers or workers, but that’s a problem for later.’

The Emperor knew that, but he quickly took Luatisha’s side at the mention of taxes.

Who wouldn’t listen to an opinion that would fill the emptied coffers [treasury]?

“The Buren and Rolls merchants dominate the Northwest region. Your Majesty knows how much wealth they monopolize in the Northwest.”

The Emperor nodded.

Luatisha realized from that ambiguous reaction that the Emperor didn’t know well.

Well, it’s strange for the Emperor to know the situation of local merchants when he’s not even in charge of the whole country.

“But what about the taxes that the two merchants pay? They receive so many exemptions for various reasons that, proportionally, it’s less than the rate that tenant farmers pay to landlords.”

“Huh, they were thieves.”

“There are three main reasons why the Northwest has become poor.”

The Emperor leaned forward from the backrest.

He began to look forward to what would come out of that little girl’s mouth.

“What are they?”

“I would first cite the arid climate and barren land, but in fact, this is not a big problem.”

“Not a big problem?”

“The Northwest, which is adjacent to the desert, was originally barren. But it has never been so poor that it needed relief from the central government for several years. It’s not like there’s a major drought right now either.”

“The Princess is right. It used to be self-sufficient.”

“The second problem is the merchants. They should be injecting supplies into the barren Northwest, but instead, they are blocking it.”

“Is that the problem you mentioned earlier?”

“Yes, they control the distribution network in the Northwest region and impose huge fees on food and necessities.”

“Then people have no choice but to buy things at high prices.”

“Yes, prices in the Northwest region are much higher than in other regions. It is natural to bring goods from far away and sell them at high prices. But even cotton cloth, which is produced in the Northwest, is sold at a high price. Of course, because they monopolize distribution, they bring in goods from farmers and producers at low prices.”

It was a long speech, but it was simple.

Your Majesty, the merchants are sucking the blood out of the poor, making them even poorer!

“Hmm…….”

The Emperor sighed.

He couldn’t help but admire the child who was hitting the core of the Northwest region.

“It was inevitable that people would become increasingly poor as they brought in goods cheaply and sold them at higher prices in an already barren land.”

“To think that those merchant scoundrels were playing such tricks.”

“What made this possible is the third problem. It is the collusion between the merchants and the local powerful families. The local powerful families are preventing other merchants from entering, so they can monopolize distribution.”

The local powerful families are the ones who made the holes for the merchants to stick their straws in!

The Emperor frowned at Luatisha’s words.

“The local powerful families in the Northwest region have been a long-standing headache for me.”

That would be the case.

Luatisha smiled.

‘That’s why I deliberately brought it up as a reason.’

“What is the reason why the local powerful families in the Northwest region can wield such great power?”

“Because of the barbarians in the desert.”

Luatisha nodded.

In fact, it has been more than 200 years since the desert barbarians actually invaded the border.

Long peace has further strengthened the power of the local powerful families who have protected the Northwest region since ancient times.

As a result of focusing only on the accumulation of wealth after the war disappeared, they became parasites that fattened their bellies by sucking the blood of ordinary people.

“If it were me, I would first impose taxes on the merchants and then ensure that the taxes go back to the imperial citizens of the Northwest region.”

“How? Are you suggesting using the taxes for relief?”

The Emperor was no longer listening to Luatisha’s opinion as an evaluator, but rather seeking advice from a competent strategist.

“That would be one way.”

“It sounds like there are other ways.”

“Before using that method, I will first deal with the desert raiders. This process will also require financial resources, so those taxes can be used.”

“But raiding is a thing of the past, and currently…….”

The Emperor stopped talking.

He realized that he could dispatch troops under the pretext of dealing with the raiders.

There’s no need to actually fight a war.

Just a show of force.

And this show of force will put tremendous pressure on the local powerful families.

An opportunity to strengthen the imperial authority in the Northwest region.

A gleam of interest flickered in the eyes of the Emperor, who was quick to calculate.

“Yes, what will you do next?”

The Emperor asked with a voice full of anticipation.

“The Northwest region has limited crops due to the arid climate. The problem is that cotton, wheat, and corn all deplete the soil.”

“Is it good to develop other industries?”

“Fortunately, there is a cobalt mine in the Northwest region. Using this will be of great help to the imperial citizens of the North.”

The Emperor smiled.

He also knew that the local powerful families monopolized the large cobalt mine.

Luatisha’s words were clear.

Take that mine and put it in the mouths of the imperial citizens.

Wasn’t she even drawing a rough sketch of how to take it?

Of course, the imperial family’s wealth would also increase in the process.

‘How can she only say things that I like so much?’

“Fortunately, there is a large river, so it would be good to use it to build dams and reservoirs.”

Luatisha added simply.

The New Deal [economic recovery program] is essential to revive the economy.

“Haha, a new wind will blow in the Northwest! I have confirmed today that Princess Paeraton’s reputation is not in vain. No, rather, her reputation has been understated!”

The Emperor laughed loudly and praised Luatisha.

The more he did, the more Clottie’s face rotted.

For the Emperor, nothing could be better.

He could solve the poverty in the troublesome Northwest region, weaken the even more troublesome local powerful families, and strengthen the imperial authority at the same time.

The lords of the Northwest region were more concerned with the local powerful families than the Emperor, so how annoying would that have been to him?

He had generously released relief rice to strengthen the Emperor’s influence, but he was frustrated because there was no sign of improvement even after three years.

Luatisha smiled as she watched the Emperor, who was pleased.

‘Yes, if you get rid of those annoying local powerful families and merchants, our Ansur merchants will also benefit from it.’

Thanks to the unprecedented item called black gold [oil], it was easier to enter the Northwest region than other merchants.

However, the restrictions were so severe when trying to increase the number of items that it was annoying.

‘And if you’re really going to do the New Deal, you know you have to give some work to Paeraton, right? If you take my idea and do something good for others, it won’t add up.’

Large-scale construction is naturally profitable. Not only that, but it also creates influence.

‘The Northwest region is also close to the Paeraton territory, so it would be good if our family’s influence grew.’

The innocent(?) Emperor laughed, saying that his long-standing problem had been solved, unaware of Luatisha’s ulterior motives.

“Princess Paeraton is very clever. To think that she would bring up the collusion and monopoly problems of the Northwest region in response to the question of how to provide relief.”

The Empress praised Luatisha, and the Empress Consort also hurriedly added.

“That’s what I’m saying. I thought she would be thinking about how to provide relief efficiently. If she went further, she would bring up the story of trade with other regions.”

In fact, the opinions of the young ladies were all like that. Miss Micheloin was the one who went further and talked about trade.

“But Princess Paeraton linked the characteristics and poverty of the Northwest region to uncover the root cause and propose a solution.”

The Empress Dowager smiled at Luatisha.

Luatisha bent and straightened her knees [bowed slightly].

“Thank you.”

She was polite but very confident.

That attitude, which did not show any humility, left an even deeper impression on the imperial family.

‘She knows the value of her opinion well. And she’s also showing that she has more than that.’

How can they not be greedy when a priceless jewel is shining brightly in front of their eyes again?

The Emperor, Empress, Empress Consort, and Empress Dowager smacked their lips.

Clottie was nowhere in their minds.

* * *

I looked around.

It seems that not only the imperial family but also the officials, including Count Chesia, were all impressed.

‘To think it would work out this well?’

The reason why I thought that way is simple.

The judges of this competition are the imperial family.

‘Then I have to give an answer that suits the tastes of the imperial family.’

First, understand the intentions of the questioner or judge.

Anyone who went to a K-school [Korean school] would have heard this, right?

I thought about what the imperial family, who are the judges, wanted.

1. No one hates money. Even more so in the imperial family, since money has been going out for relief, they would want to fill their coffers even more.

2. How annoying would the Northwest region be, where the power of the local powerful families is still stronger than the imperial authority even after giving them food for three years?

Of course, they would want to push out the local powerful families and strengthen the imperial authority.

If you deviate from the question of how to provide relief and start from there, it’s very simple.

The cause of relief is poverty, and you can link those two things to the poverty of the Northwest.

Anyway, I was thankful that they were so impressed.

Since I said my opinion in front of so many people, it would be even more effective.

‘Thank you, Clottie!’

If it weren’t for you, my proposal would have just been seen by a few members of the imperial family and officials!

Thanks to your trickery, the rumors will be huge!

The Princess has turned the competition stage upside down!

‘And the rumor that you tried to frame me but got completely humiliated is a bonus.’

“Relying on the wisdom of His Majesty the Great Emperor, I dare to ask.”

“Ask anything comfortably.”

“Would I, who knew all the flaws in the proposal and even thought of a better opinion, have submitted that proposal?”

“Of course not. This proposal is not the Princess’s.”

The Emperor quickly answered, matching my rhythm.

“Then, Your Majesty, why was a proposal that I didn’t even write submitted?”

“Someone must have switched the Princess’s opinion.”

Good.

It’s not my claim, but the Emperor’s words.

Its weight is by no means light.

I glanced to the side and saw Clottie standing there with a face that looked like she wanted to scream that it wasn’t true.

When our eyes met, she glared at me with glistening eyes.

Your eyes are going to fall out, girl.

“Someone switched my proposal with the same content as Miss Tarenka’s.”

Well, to be exact, I let them switch it.

“Miss Tarenka, what’s going on?”

Everyone’s eyes were on Clottie. Eyes full of suspicion, anger, and contempt.

Clottie opened her mouth with a pale face.

“I, I don’t know what’s going on. Surely, someone copied my proposal and wrote Luatisha’s name on it to frame me……. I’m really wronged [innocent], Your Majesty.”

“Then Miss Tarenka’s proposal being the same as the opinion I wrote and discarded in advance is purely coincidental, right?”

When I teased her from the side, Clottie glared at me as if she would tear me apart.

“Miss Tarenka, are you daring to lie in front of me? You must be prepared for the consequences of insulting me?”

The crime of insulting the Emperor.

Clottie’s lips dried at the heavy reverberation.

“Ah, I, it’s not that…….”

“It would be better for you to speak with your own mouth. If you switched the proposals, there must be evidence left.”

“Come to think of it, there was someone I bumped into when I went to submit the proposal.”

Clottie’s eyes shook at my words.

And there was someone who was trembling even more than her.

“Miss Selando, we bumped into each other, right?”

At my question, Miss Selando opened her mouth and looked around.

Everyone knew that Miss Selando and I had trouble from the first day.

‘Yes, it’s foolish to just deny that we bumped into each other here.’

So, she has to say what she has to say, right?

“I, it’s not me! I just did what Miss Tarenka told me to do!”

“What nonsense! No, Your Majesty! Miss Selando was clearly trying to trick me and Luatisha一.”

“Enough!”

The Empress stood up and shouted.

“Not only are you daring to commit such fraud in a competition that His Majesty the Emperor is personally overseeing, but you are also just telling lies!”

“Y, Your Majesty the Empress…….”

Clottie looked at the Empress with eyes full of injustice.

That’s understandable.

Just a moment ago, the Empress was on Clottie’s side.

“To think that you don’t even know how to reflect on your mistakes! I have never seen such an arrogant and vicious young lady!”

It was no different from saying that she would exclude Clottie from society.

Clottie’s lips moved as if she had received a death sentence.

Soon, tears began to well up in her big eyes.

But the Empress didn’t care about Clottie and quickly came to me and took my hand.