CHAPTER 520: CHAPTER 86: YOUR MONEY OR YOUR LIFE

"What a slick fraudster, spouting utter nonsense and trying to deceive me. Lord Jin Nuo, catch him," Niu Er, Tax Officer, gave Jin Nuo a meaningful glance.

Even with a sharp tongue, what can he achieve? If this impostor had hidden in the county under the protection of this strange wall, he might have saved his little life.

But he doesn’t know when he’s outmatched and has come out alone.

No matter his reasons or excuses, once this lad is caught, Fengdan County will obediently fall into his hands.

Niu Er, Tax Officer, sinisterly thought, originally believing he had been assigned a grueling task, to collect taxes in the godforsaken Fengdan County. Little did he know, the current situation in Fengdan County was markedly different from a few years ago.

This time, it wouldn’t be his turn to prosper.

Jin Nuo secretly made up his mind.

The cunning of Yue Jinghua attracted even more the idea of recruitment from Jin Nuo.

But then he remembered something; given Yue Jinghua’s personality, he doubted that he would easily join the Military Department.

He must find a way to make him join the Imperial Military Department voluntarily.

Jin Nuo remained silent and grave, knowing well that Niu Er was exploiting the situation, but by seizing Yue Jinghua and then showing him favor, he reckoned he would not be able to refuse.

Jin Nuo’s eyes flickered deeply, his thoughts unreadable, as Yue Jinghua suddenly called out loudly: "Wait a moment."

Her eyebrows slightly raised, she suddenly heard a whizz of arrows cutting through the air,

skimming past the scalp of Niu Er, Tax Officer. The arrow came without a trace and disappeared without a trace, hitting the ground and creating a crater more than half a meter wide.

Niu Er, Tax Officer, who had never seen such a display, was so frightened that he fell to the ground immediately, and a foul smell wafted from between his legs.

Disgusted, Jin Nuo frowned and thought to himself: Trouble, there are snipers hidden nearby.

He scanned around but found no signs of ambush.

He understood then that the hidden sniper must be a Dark Earth expert, capable of killing targets instantly from miles away.

"Yue Jinghua, you’ve got some nerve to attempt to kill an Imperial Minister," Jin Nuo sternly questioned, "You think with a few snipers you can kill me?"

"Lord Jin Nuo, as a Dark Heavenly Master, you surely aren’t afraid of normal Dark Energy Arrows. But Master Niu Er isn’t so lucky—killing him from miles away wouldn’t be much harder than shooting through a watermelon," Yue Jinghua’s lips curled into a smile that was not quite a smile, "Master Niu Er, if I were you, I wouldn’t want to taste what it’s like to have my head exploded—it’s not pleasant feeling the brain spatter and eyeballs rolling on the ground."

Niu Er was tongue-tied, his throat seemingly filled with mercury, "No---don’t---Lord Jin Nuo save me."

"Does this mean that Master Niu Er has waived the taxes for Fengdan County? You truly have a heart of a Bodhisattva, knowing that Fengdan County needs significant funds for reconstruction right now," Yue Jinghua bluntly pocketed the Dan Xuan Card and personally helped Niu Er, Tax Officer, up from the ground, courteously leading him into Fengdan County.

As Jin Nuo watched the situation rapidly change and harbored doubts about Yue Jinghua’s identity, he felt it inappropriate to make a scene at that moment and had no choice but to follow her into Fengdan County.

Walking along, they were greeted by a lake as smooth as a mirror and a picturesque distant mountain scene.

In the county’s farmland, various endearing stone-eating pigs were plowing the fields while the local farmers leisurely sat on the ridges, smoking from their water pipes.

Seeing Yue Jinghua passing by with a contingent of Imperial Soldiers, the farmers were not panicked and warmly hailed, "Lord!"

The relationship between the lord and the residents of the territory had absolutely none of the usual class distinctions.

In the eyes of the local residents, Yue Jinghua was no different from ordinary people.

Moving forward, the roads in the county were smooth, with a steady flow of trading caravans.

The buildings within the county were arranged in an orderly manner, and newly constructed buildings rich with regional characteristics formed unique scenic landscapes one after another.

Jin Nuo was amazed; he could hardly believe that the impoverished Fengdan County of the Empire had completely transformed within just a year.

And all this seemed to be thanks to the young man standing in front of him.

Jin Nuo’s eyebrows relaxed and then knitted together again, then slackened once more.

In the residential area of the county, he also discovered a large Transmission Array.

A soldier guarding the Transmission Array stated that it provided direct access to Five Saints Town.

It was drawn by a local Array Master, and with it, residents and trading caravans no longer needed to traverse the perilous Xuan Beast Ridge.

They could travel directly between Fengdan County and Five Saints Town, with local residents needing to pay five Empire Silver Coins each trip, and traders and passersby paying two Gold Coins each.

Unlike local residents, the soldiers guarding the Dark Array treated Yue Jinghua with the utmost respect and did not dare to show the slightest disobedience.

"You’ve done well," Jin Nuo finally had to temporarily compromise, "but your identity, based merely on your own words, is not enough for me to believe you are truly from Duke Xueying Mansion.

At that moment, Hongling hurried in, holding a Golden Scroll in her hand and personally handed it to Yue Jinghua.

"A title document from Blood Cherry Duke Mansion?" Seeing the golden scroll, carved like gold and only the size of a fist, Jin Nuo immediately recognized it as belonging to Blood Cherry Duke Mansion.

At the founding of the Dragon War Empire, the founding Emperor Long Teng I cast five scrolls and distributed them to the founding heroes, including those from Blood Cherry Duke Mansion.

As a descendant of one of the Empire’s families, Peng Bo, Jin Nuo naturally recognized the golden scroll.

"It was sent by my elder brother Yue Minzhi," Yue Jinghua had already decided; after Yue Chen left, she would assume Yue Chen’s identity.

Firstly, dressing as a man made matters easier, and secondly, few people knew Yue Chen’s true identity and age.

Returning to the Imperial City after three years, few would notice or recognize her true identity as the infamous ugly girl Yue Jinghua.

After inspecting the golden scroll, Jin Nuo somewhat believed Yue Jinghua’s identity, but as it concerned the ownership of Empire territory, he could not be careless: "

"If you can produce an item that proves your identity as someone from Blood Cherry Duke Mansion, then I will believe you. Otherwise, today, you threatened and tempted Niu Er, the Tax Officer, and with his exacting nature, once he returns to the Empire, he will undoubtedly exaggerate the situation. Just the charge of plotting against an Imperial Minister is enough to have you executed. You must realize that you are not only standing against me but against the entire Dragon War Empire."

Fighting one person is easy, but fighting an entire country, with Yue Jinghua’s current power, is impossible.

Having said this, Jin Nuo awaited Yue Jinghua’s reply. After some thought, she replied, "Well then, I must return to Wohua Imperial City sooner or later; rather than picking a day, why not just go today? I will return to Wohua Imperial City today with my mother and servant. I hope for your guidance, Brother Jin Nuo."

Wohua Imperial City is not like Shang Kingdom, and since there is the substantial support of Jin Nuo, it would be better to maintain a good relationship with him before her power fully matures.