In the famine, others ate Guanyin soil, but he had space to build a farm.

Lin Kunlun stood at the edge of the village, his eyes deep and complex. He looked at the busy villagers, with mixed feelings in his heart. He did not want to have any conflict with these simple villagers. In this chaotic world, they were like fallen leaves, which could be blown away by the wind at any time. However, he knew the complexity of human nature. Some people, once they see others living better than themselves, will become jealous and even want to take away their good luck by any means.

As one of the top investors in modern society, Lin Kunlun has long seen through the minds of these people. He shook his head slightly and decided in his heart: "It seems that I can only ask Sun Ying's people to come forward. They are good at handling this kind of thing and may be able to help me solve this problem. Moreover, I also want to go to Shunyi to inquire about the news and see if they can help."

In the distant Xishan County government office, the atmosphere was extremely solemn. County Magistrate Li Wei tightly grasped the imperial edict for collecting taxes, his eyes flashing with anger. He growled angrily: "What on earth are those people in the court thinking? In such a situation, they still want to collect taxes! Isn't this pushing the people into a desperate situation?"

County Magistrate Chen stood aside, his face calm, but his heart was turbulent. He knew very well that the implementation of this tax policy was extremely difficult, and he was even more worried about the social unrest it might cause. He tentatively suggested: "Ming Gong, perhaps we can first find some wealthy families to discuss and ask them to pay more taxes to reduce the burden on the people."

Li Wei glanced at him coldly and snorted, "Rich people? Do you think their money came from the wind? They have become rich today after countless hard work. Moreover, these wealthy people often have inextricable connections with high-ranking officials in the court. If we touch their interests, I am afraid we will get into trouble."

County Magistrate Chen was silent. He knew that Li Wei was right. In this disaster year, who wouldn't be careful to protect their own interests? Moreover, in this poor county in the southwest, there were not so many wealthy families who could provide food.

Suddenly, a gleam of light flashed in Li Wei's eyes. He looked at Chen Xiancheng and asked anxiously, "Brother Chen, what do you say? We should take out some of the grain from the county treasury and hand it over? When there is new grain next year, we can find a way to make up for it!"

Upon hearing this, County Magistrate Chen broke out in a cold sweat. He knew that he had always been in charge of the county's granary, but the secrets could not be easily disclosed. He, his chief clerk, and several other people had already taken out the grain from the granary and exchanged it for money. Now, what was left in the granary was only the old grain that had been stored for a long time, which could not be used to pay taxes at all.

The conversation between the two echoed in the silent county government office. The air around them seemed to be affected by the depressing atmosphere and became extremely dull. The old trees in the county government office swayed gently in the breeze, making rustling sounds, as if telling something. The mountains in the distance looked even more vast and profound under the afterglow of the setting sun.

Chen County Magistrate was very nervous, as he knew that if this matter was exposed, the consequences would be disastrous. He forced a smile and promised: "Don't worry, my lord, I will not let you down and win honor for everyone!" However, his heart was full of worry and uneasiness.

Li Wei glanced at Chen Xiancheng coldly, then turned and left the county government office. Chen Xiancheng saw this and quickly chased after them. After they left, a low shout suddenly came from the originally quiet house: "Come out!"

A middle-aged man walked out slowly from the corner. He was wearing a black police uniform, with a dark face and a gloomy expression. He was none other than Yang, the oldest and most experienced police officer in the county government.

"Mr. Chen!" Captain Yang bowed respectfully.

"Have you investigated it clearly? Where did my son's grain go?" asked County Magistrate Chen with a gloomy face.

Captain Yang paused and replied, "We investigated all the people in the county who could mobilize a large number of people and transport the grain in a short period of time. But no one was able to do such a thing within that time."

Upon hearing this, County Magistrate Chen's face darkened even more. He asked solemnly, "Have you interrogated those guys?"

Captain Yang nodded and said, "Yes! I personally interrogated them. However, no matter how much they were tortured, none of them admitted to having anything to do with the missing grain. And from my experience, they definitely did not lie. They are all ordinary people and cannot stand our criminal law."

County Magistrate Chen snorted coldly, his eyes flashing with hatred. He knew that the disappearance of this batch of grain involved the interests of many people. If it could not be found, his Chen family and the forces behind it would face huge losses.

"You continue to investigate this case!" County Magistrate Chen ordered coldly, "Also, since the imperial edict has come down, you must also arrange some people to collect taxes in various regions. Remember, you must act carefully and not arouse public anger."

Captain Yang nodded, but he was secretly worried. He knew that this matter was beyond his ability, but he could only do his best. At the same time, he was also worried about the upcoming tax collection task. In this turbulent era, any disturbance could lead to public resistance. He could only pray for God's blessing and hope that everything would go well.

At this time, the imperial edict on taxation was posted at the gate of the county town and in each town.

"Hurry up and take a look at what's written there!" At the east gate of Xishan County, there was a photo that the yamen runners had just posted, and people gathered around immediately. Everyone was having a hard time now. They had been hoping that the imperial court would give them relief.

However, the contents of the imperial edict extinguished their hopes like cold water. Someone pointed at the words on the imperial edict with a trembling finger, his voice trembling with disbelief: "Is this... is this true? The court actually wants us to pay taxes?"

People gathered around and looked at the contents of the edict, with anger and disappointment on their faces. Many of them had already suffered from famine and war, and their lives were in dire straits. At this moment, the imperial edict of taxation was undoubtedly another heavy blow to them.

"We can't even afford to eat, how can we have the money to pay taxes!" An old man waved his cane angrily, his voice filled with endless grief and indignation.

"The imperial court is pushing us into a dead end!" A young man clenched his fists, his eyes flashing with anger.

The crowd became increasingly excited, and some began to shout slogans of resistance. The small county seemed to have become a sea of ​​anger, with everyone's heart filled with dissatisfaction and resentment towards the court.

However, at this moment, the sound of horse hooves broke the angry atmosphere. A group of yamen runners rode over quickly, holding sticks and with stern faces. Leading the group was a burly yamen runner leader, who glanced coldly at the crowd around him and shouted, "What are you all doing here? Disperse!"

The anger in the crowd was temporarily suppressed by this shout, but everyone's heart was still full of dissatisfaction and resentment. They knew that no matter how dissatisfied they were, they could not change the court's decision. They could only silently bear this heavy burden and hope that one day they could get rid of this endless suffering.

In the county government, Chen Xiancheng also got the news. He listened to the report from his servants with a frown on his face. He knew that once the news spread, it would trigger a strong backlash from the people. However, as an official of the court, what could he do? He could only try his best to appease the people and find ways to raise taxes to complete the court's task.

This small county, under the imperial edict of the court, once again fell into turmoil and unrest. And Lin Kunlun and Sun Ying's people will also begin their actions at this turbulent moment.

The same situation was happening in all the counties and towns in the western region. Even some remote villages had special village heads and village heads to announce the news.

When Lin Kunlun received the news, he had rushed to the county town and was standing at the gate of the county town, where he saw the notice.

"I didn't expect the court to finally decide to levy taxes, and the amount of taxes is higher than in previous years! The court is really trying to quench thirst with poison!" Lin Kunlun shook his head and walked towards where Sun Ying was. He knew that Sun Ying must be very anxious now after hearing the news. After all, they are the first to be taxed if they have a large amount of grain. And the court will definitely ask them to donate more.