Chapter 1810: Chapter 1795: Tributor Price
"The Minister of Rites of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom, during the imperial mourning period of Guo Guangchang, the previous Marquis Haiyuan, which lasted eighty-one days, even brought two concubines into his home. Heh..." As Ye Zhen casually flipped through a record from the secret archives, a cold sneer echoed.
"Let’s go, if Marquis Guo Guangchang doesn’t prosecute the disrespect against him, we at the Heavenly Patrol Department will deal with it."
As soon as the first target was confirmed, at the advent of nightfall, Ye Zhen led a large troop straight to the Minister of Rites’ residence of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom.
A group of Heavenly Patrol Divine Hunters stormed in. The guards of the Minister of Rites’ residence initially tried to resist, but when the token from the Heavenly Patrol Department was revealed, only the most stubborn guards dared to continue resisting.
Initially, the Minister of Rites of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom defended himself vehemently, but Liuu Feng soon found the two concubines who were brought into the residence during the mourning period.
The face of the Minister of Rites of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom turned ashen white.
Just as the Minister of Rites of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom was apprehended, Liuu Feng received a talisman communication sent casually by Ye Zhen.
"The Minister of Justice of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom took a huge bribe of fifty thousand high-grade spiritual stones four years ago, after which he forced the Li family to pay the Wang family’s mining losses in a mine dispute, leading to the ruin of the Li family.
Casually find someone to pretend to be the aggrieved party from the Li family and draft a complaint, directly arrest the Minister of Justice of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom." Ye Zhen’s jade scroll detailed arrangements meticulously.
Liuu Feng then led his troops in a whirlwind assault towards the residence of the Minister of Justice.
To speak of the officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty, none had a clean slate.
More or less, large or small, they all had some illegal activities or abused power.
Even if the officials themselves were relatively clean, their family members, children, and relatives were often restless, misusing the officials’ names to do wrong.
Records like these, Ye Zhen found a whole bunch in the secret archives of the Heavenly Patrol Department.
It must be said that the inspection secret records kept by the West Patrol were too detailed; if followed to arrest people, Ye Zhen could capture all levels of officials in the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom.
Of course, capturing them didn’t mean they all had to die; few could be sentenced to death.
But, some might be imprisoned for a year or two, others for decades or even a hundred years; severe cases could have their titles stripped and be exiled.
Like the Minister of Rites who violated during the mourning period, as someone who should uphold the law, his crime is aggravated, reporting to Luoyi could result in a punishment of decapitation.
However, there’s no interest in that now.
The governance of the officials in the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom is Marquis Guo’s concern. Ye Zhen has no intention to clean up his world.
Now, Ye Zhen only desires for Marquis Guo of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom to regret.
Thus, after roughly reviewing the inspection secret records, Ye Zhen no longer personally fabricates charges, simply tossing the inspection secret records to Liuu Feng.
Let Deputy Envoy Liuu Feng arrest people according to the record.
Ye Zhen gave Liuu Feng one request: as long as there is a record in the inspection secret archives, I want you to arrest all the high officials in the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom as quickly as possible.
Not all, but at least the six ministers, the imperial censors, and those black-robed officials of the third-rank and above, arrest everyone with a crime.
As for resistance and potential danger, Ye Zhen had already considered it.
Telling Liuu Feng to arrest without hesitation, Ye Zhen also directly deployed two hundred of his three hundred sacrificial guards, sending the leader Yii Jue to assist Liuu Feng.
In the shadows, Heavenly Patrol Divine General Fengg Jiumo was monitoring the situation, ensuring everything was foolproof.
With the matter entrusted to Liuu Feng, Ye Zhen finally had time to discuss with Master Xuanzhi in front of him.
Speaking of which, this Master Xuanzhi had waited for Ye Zhen for half a day, showing considerable patience.
However, Master Xuanzhi’s mood seemed not so good now.
The reason is simple: Master Xuanzhi had just witnessed the Heavenly Patrol Department’s display of power and fabrication of charges.
Even though Master Xuanzhi understood that Ye Zhen’s fabrication of charges was based on actual records in the inspection secret archives, making the perpetrators deserving of their punishment.
But watching as those high officials of the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom, whom he had once been guests to, were treated like dogs by Ye Zhen, especially seeing those already captured officials tied up without dignity, Master Xuanzhi’s heart was deeply shaken.
The power of the Heavenly Patrol Department, Xuanzhi National Master had truly witnessed.
And Ye Zhen, this Wind Patrol Envoy, had not only authority but also was backed by the Ancestor God Temple, wielding terrifying power, which made Master Xuanzhi willing to stay until now.
"I apologize for keeping Master waiting due to the complex affairs on my side," Ye Zhen said, finally finding time to discuss with Master Xuanzhi after dismissing Liuu Feng.
"No need for such heavy words, Left Chief Priest Ye. Today, I had my eyes opened and witnessed the might of the Heavenly Patrol Department." Master Xuanzhi, being reasonable, dropped the airs of a Dao Realm expert, as Ye Zhen had lowered his stance significantly.
Moreover, Master Xuanzhi had been particularly surprised to find that Ye Zhen, the Wind Patrol Envoy before him, seemed unaffected by his Dao Realm aura.
"Master Xuanzhi, let’s not waste time. The reason I retained Master here today is to discuss a matter." Ye Zhen stated directly.
"Please speak, Left Chief Priest Ye. As long as it’s within my power, I will help." Master Xuanzhi spoke politely, clearly intending to avoid offending Ye Zhen.
It’s not that Master Xuanzhi lacked backbone, but rather the life of a Loose Cultivator was tough.
He wished to join major organizations like the Heavenly Temple or Ancestor God Temple, but the Ancestor God Temple of the Great Zhou never accepts outsiders.
Someone like Master Xuanzhi had reached the Dao Realm and couldn’t switch cultivation methods to cultivate the Daoist School methods of the Ancestor God Temple, naturally making him unable to join the Ancestor God Temple.
There is a possibility of joining the Heavenly Temple and gaining the status of a Grand Divine Master.
However, as an outsider in such a high position, there would be a hundred percent chance of being marginalized, with few benefits, and even the cultivation resources might not be guaranteed; in critical moments, one might be used as a high-level cannon fodder.
As for the tributor status with big families, he is unwilling to have his Divine Soul bound.
Thus, he could only become a Loose Cultivator.
But being a Loose Cultivator, he has to be extremely careful to avoid offending anyone and ending up as a prisoner without realizing how it happened.
With caution all the way, Master Xuanzhi has only reached his current state in the Dao Realm.
"But before discussing this matter, I first want to know, Master Xuanzhi, where do you plan to go after leaving here today?" Ye Zhen asked.
Upon hearing these words, Master Xuanzhi chuckled bitterly before answering.
"I enjoy freedom and dislike constraints. After leaving today, I plan to revisit some of the small enfeoffed nations I traveled to before, to see if any of them would like to take me as a tributor and supply me with cultivation resources."
"Is that so? May I ask, Master, if someone wanted to take you as a tributor, what would be the price?" Ye Zhen suddenly asked.
"And who might you be, Left Chief Priest Ye?"
Master Xuanzhi realized something, pondered briefly, and replied, "It’s hard to say, but over here in the Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom, the price would be one hundred High Grade Thought Spirit Pills, one million High Grade Spiritual Stones annually, along with Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures worth one million High Grade Spiritual Stones."
Basically, three million High Grade Spiritual Stones a year, this number is quite large, but it is not considered high relative to the value of a Dao Realm expert.
However, asking Ye Zhen to fork out three million High Grade Spiritual Stones wouldn’t be difficult considering he had just gained a windfall.
But if this amount had to be given every year, it would not be manageable for Ye Zhen.
After all, the annual total income of Ye Zhen’s North Sea County, including the Market of Dulong Island, is only about six million High Grade Spiritual Stones.
From this, the military expenses for the army of a million soldiers in North Sea County, along with the salaries of officials in North Sea County, need to be deducted, leaving an annual surplus of just over two million High Grade Spiritual Stones.
With these two million High Grade Spiritual Stones, Ye Zhen still needs to continuously supply his cultivation, as well as the cultivation of the two hundred Ascetic Priests in the Mirage Dragon Pearl.
So, excluding the windfall, Ye Zhen’s current income and expenditure are still quite tight.
This is also why Ye Zhen is determined to take over the Ancient Teleportation Formation in Haiyuan City.
By taking over this Ancient Teleportation Formation, not only would Ye Zhen have an additional source of income, but the cost and profit of his merchants under his command could also be drastically reduced and increased.
But if he invited Master Xuanzhi to be a tributor, then Ye Zhen’s surplus would still be very limited, and he wouldn’t be able to do much.
After contemplating, Ye Zhen spoke again, "Master Xuanzhi, you probably guessed what I’m thinking. I want to invite you to serve as a tributor in my North Sea County and as the Second Route Wind Patrol Envoy, stationed in the middle route. What is your price for being a tributor?"
Setting a price directly, Master Xuanzhi seemed somewhat troubled as well; usually, when others invited him as a tributor, they would set a price before inviting him.
This time, Ye Zhen is unexpectedly letting him set the price.
"Well... Left Chief Priest Ye, I won’t hide anything from you. If Left Chief Priest Ye truly wants to invite me as a tributor, the resource amount provided by Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom as tribute would be very appropriate."
At this point, Master Xuanzhi’s eyes lit up as he continued, "However, if Left Chief Priest Ye could help me acquire some relatively rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, the price for my tribute could be negotiable."
Having mingled for years, Master Xuanzhi had become a shrewd old hand; he could basically confirm that Ye Zhen truly wanted to take him as a tributor but was not financially abundant at the moment.
Hence, he made such a remark.
Actually, Master Xuanzhi genuinely preferred those rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, which were scarce even for Dao Realm experts, as Spirit Stones could easily be acquired, unlike those treasures.
Even Marquis Haiyuan Kingdom hadn’t managed to acquire any rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures in the past six to seven years.
However, Master Xuanzhi thought that since Ye Zhen served as a Wind Patrol Envoy for a route in the Heavenly Patrol Department and was also the Left Chief Priest of one hall in the Ancestor God Temple, this might be possible.
Coincidentally, Master Xuanzhi’s latter sentence also caught Ye Zhen’s attention.
He hurriedly asked, "Master, could you give a few examples of the rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures you require?"
"First would be Acquired Spirit Treasures; if there’s a suitable Acquired Spirit Treasure, I could offer my services to you for free for a hundred years."
Master Xuanzhi was quite eager about Acquired Spirit Treasures, hence mentioning it first; however, Ye Zhen’s reaction still left him a little disappointed.
"Then there are treasures that help Dao Realm experts gain insight into the Heavenly Dao, such as the Holy Item Yantian Pill, the Meteorite Core, or the Spirit Void Fruit..."
When Ye Zhen heard of the Spirit Void Fruit, he was delighted and immediately asked, "Master, do you need Spirit Void Fruit? I happen to have a secret channel to purchase Spirit Void Fruit. How do you consider it, Master?"
"Left Chief Priest Ye has a channel to purchase Spirit Void Fruit?" Master Xuanzhi’s eyes suddenly shone brighter than the stars.
"If Left Chief Priest Ye could truly provide Spirit Void Fruit for me, then ten pieces a year..."
At this point, seeing Ye Zhen’s abrupt changing expression, Master Xuanzhi quickly reduced the price on his own initiative, "Even if not ten pieces, eight pieces would do, but it must still be at least seven Spirit Void Fruits!"
"Seven Spirit Void Fruits?" Ye Zhen looked stunned.
Realizing that Ye Zhen might find it too high, Master Xuanzhi contemplated and then laughed wryly, "Commander Ye, seven Spirit Void Fruits, it truly can’t be any lower."
"Alright, deal!"
While speaking, Ye Zhen extended one finger towards Master Xuanzhi, "Ten pieces, I’ll give Master ten Spirit Void Fruits a year, but Master must make a simple Divine Soul Oath."
