Doomsday Wonderland

Chapter 1388: Proactively Generating Revenue

Humans are peculiar.

Just by looking at Louisa’s expression, Lin Sanjiu could tell that when Louisa first proposed the fee, she felt guilty and hesitant. However, after a few minutes of heated argument with Horst, Louisa’s guilty expression vanished. She was now more convinced that she had no other choice, and each of her rebuttals were self-righteous.

Lin Sanjiu pacified both, saying to Louisa, “I give my word that if you’re short tomorrow, I’ll make up for it. You won’t lose anything. Even if the others are unwilling, I’ll give you my own output. Don’t charge such a high fee for now, but if you become worried, you can raise it again at any time.”

Although she hadn’t fought side by side with the three new members, they had spent enough time together for them to develop a certain level of trust in her, though it was not absolute. It was more like a lost tour group willing to continue trusting the guide’s advice.

For the time being, at least, it was enough to make Louisa back down.

Considering the tax issue, Louisa couldn’t fix the tool for free, so she could only continue charging the old price of two food balls. Just as Horst was about to turn around and get the box, Nu Yue stopped him. “What are you doing?”

“Paying,” Horst replied.

“That’s the leftover public grain,” Nu Yue said, tired. “Pay her with the two you produced later.”

Horst’s face fell. “So, did my work for the last two hours amount to nothing?”

Nu Yue didn’t even look at him. “You break it, you pay to fix it. What else?”

Horst, with nothing to counter with, slowly opened his backpack to take out the food balls. “I feel like I’ve already given up most of my income. Not only me, but all four of us farmers. But why, when there’s a problem, do we still have to pay out of our own pockets?”

Nu Yue concentrated on the field without responding, and Louisa just sneered.

Of course, these two food balls could not be directly handed over to Louisa. Jian Sheng, as a tax collector, also needed to prove his worth; he deducted two balls from the farmers’ most recent income of eight balls, and then deducted half a ball from Louisa’s hand, following the same procedures as last time.

However, this time, after he collected the tax, he did not leave immediately.

“We now have more than eight balls in reserve,” he said, watching Lin Sanjiu put the food balls into the box. “It’s not unreasonable for me to ask for one more now, is it?”

“Why?” someone asked. “Didn’t you already eat three today?”

“Yes, but that’s the bare minimum,” Jian Sheng replied with a bitter expression, sighing. “You don’t have to shuttle back and forth in this room, so you don’t know how tiring this journey is. If I can bring one with me when I leave, just in case, it can prevent me from collapsing halfway and not being able to pay the tax.”

“That seems reasonable,” Lin Sanjiu said. “Does anyone have any objections?”

This was a necessary expense, so even if they were reluctant, no one showed much resistance. They had also considered moving the fields next to the concrete trough to reduce Jian Sheng’s hardship and expenses. But first, the act of trekking and moving would mean at least half an hour to an hour of no food production, a loss they couldn’t afford; and second, the elephant often went to the edge of the concrete trough to eat. What if it stepped on a field?

“Then I’ll take one as well,” Horst declared. Lin Sanjiu was realizing for the first time that he harbored a wellspring of ideas beneath that tough facade. “I’ve put in eleven hours of work today and will be back at it tomorrow. Don’t I deserve a little boost?”

That’s how humans are; they don’t worry about scarcity but inequality. Once someone gets a fourth ball, everyone wants a fourth. Lin Sanjiu glanced at Ji Shanqing. Seeing he was still silent, she hesitantly said, “Then we each take one.”

Silvan remained at his secluded spot at the room’s far end, near the concrete trough, the elephant’s bulk a silent barrier between them. It was uncertain if Silvan had caught any of the conversation. Horst cast a discreet glance toward Silvan, then dropped his voice to murmur, “Everyone plays their part, sure, but not all roles weigh the same. What purpose does the inspector serve anyway? As long as we all abide by the agreement, isn’t he just a loafer?”

Lin Sanjiu didn’t think Horse would have said such a thing if Silvan had been close, or if Horst had been less weary and more spirited.

Of course, even if what he said seemed to make some sense, nobody dared skimp on Silvan’s share of the food. They passed the food balls to Jian Sheng, entrusting him with the delivery. By the time Jian Sheng reached the trough, the elephant had shuffled to the other side.

Silvan slowly stood up and took Jian Sheng’s backpack with an air of disinterest. He barely glanced at it before casting his eyes to the wall inscription saying, ‘Please demonstrate your contribution to society.’

“Invalid,” he said.

The room fell into a stunned silence.

“The entire tax is accounted for; I’ve taken none for myself,” Jian Sheng protested, looking to the others for affirmation before turning back to Silvan. “What makes it invalid?”

“Not all of it is accounted for.”

Jian Sheng’s face flushed with anxiety. “I’ve collected two and a half balls in tax. It’s all here for everyone to see.” He carefully separated his and Silvan’s portions, presenting the tax portion for all to scrutinize. “See, two and a half.”

Lin Sanjiu squinted from afar, confirming the count. It seemed impossible for Jian Sheng to fabricate such evidence, as there were no other supplies in this room.

Silvan sat back down and reiterated, “The full tax hasn’t been accounted for.”

“Then tell me, why isn’t the tax sufficient? How could there possibly be more?” Jian Sheng said, his temples pulsing. If it were anyone but Silvan, perhaps Jian Sheng wouldn’t have the restraint he had now. “You can’t just deem it inadequate without explaining, can you?”

Silvan looked up, his blond locks cascading over his shoulders, meeting Jian Sheng’s gaze with a serene composure. “That’s precisely how it is.”

Jian Sheng’s irritation rendered him momentarily speechless.

Why was Silvan being so uncooperative?

Amidst Lin Sanjiu’s bewilderment, Ji Shanqing gently pulled at her sleeve, whispering, “Sis, he must act this way.”

But why?

“He has to prove his worth, to both the room and Horst. His position is just as pivotal. If Silvan deems Jian Sheng’s collection invalid, and the tax remains unpaid, we could only watch the food as we starve,” Ji Shanqing said, dropping his voice to a murmur. “Besides, Silvan might actually be right. There could be some tax missing from that backpack.”

“I don’t believe this,” Jian Sheng said, his patience snapping. He grabbed the food ball to deposit it in the trough. “I’ll do it myself!”

As soon as the food ball disappeared at the edge of the cement trough, it bounced back out.

No matter how many times he tried, the food ball steadfastly refused to enter the trough, and the elephant showed no interest in it. Eventually, Jian Sheng, soaked in sweat and utterly spent, gave up. He sat on the ground and gasped for air, looking to be in thought.

“Why aren’t you telling him?” Lin Sanjiu whispered to the grand prize as they worked the fields. “I’m also curious. Our tax amount is two and a half balls, isn’t it?”

“Silvan is testing him,” Ji Shanqing whispered back. “He won’t be able to figure out why there’s a tax shortfall if he doesn’t think hard about it. Be patient and wait a bit.”

Lin Sanjiu held back the brewing questions in her stomach, allowing a few moments to pass before Jian Sheng suddenly moved.

“Consider this a token of our collective appreciation,” he said, noticeably calmer, as if the edge of his frustration had dulled. He reached out and handed over the food ball meant for the inspector. “You’ve had a hard day, and finding an exit hasn’t been easy. Take this—replenish yourself.”

Silvan examined the food ball in his hands, contemplating.

If he wanted to eat it, he would have to give in and let Jian Sheng pay the tax, or he wouldn’t be able to unwrap the food ball.

“If one isn’t sufficient, we’ll think of a way to give you more,” Jian Sheng said.

Lin Sanjiu had braced for Horst to voice his opposition again, yet, to her surprise, she found the big guy gazing at Silvan with an anticipatory look, hoping like everyone else that Silvan would quickly accept and allow the tax payment to proceed. The earlier tension sparked by Silvan’s declaration of the tax shortfall had evaporated.

After a brief pause, Silvan tossed the food ball into his backpack. “I’ll accept this,” he said, and a collective sigh of relief swept the group, only to be cut short by his ensuing remark. “But think carefully about why the tax is insufficient.”

“How can he accept the offer without doing his job?” Nu Yue whispered. Even Silvan’s charm seemed to lose its luster in the face of near starvation.

Jian Sheng pursed his lips, sitting motionless for a while. Under everyone’s gaze, he slowly took out the tax collector’s tool from his bag, placed the ball he received earlier, and cut off a small piece. Then he put that tiny fragment next to the two and a half food balls.

Silvan chuckled. “You see? Now the tax is sufficient.”

‘What does he mean?’

Lin Sanjiu hadn’t figured it out yet, but she felt a series of shocks. She intuitively knew that something significant had been discovered in this process. Thinking a little deeper, she instinctively grabbed the grand prize’s hand.

“Could it be?” she whispered, a hint of incredulity in her voice. “When Jian Sheng asked for an extra food ball, he wasn’t concerned about running out of energy… but thinking about charging fees?”

“Exactly,” Ji Shanqing said. “Tax collectors and inspectors primarily get their income from a 10% cut of the tax. If the farmers didn’t agree to share the food balls, the tax collector would have to stall collecting the tax until it’s as high as 30 balls for his share to be just enough… which is impossible. But who’s to say a tax collector can’t levy a little extra for his services to make up for the shortcoming?”

Lin Sanjiu watched Jian Sheng deposit the adjusted tax into the food slot, and the elephant immediately turned around and went over to the slot with a thud.

Perhaps because Jian Sheng stated that the ball given to Silvan was a token of appreciation rather than compensation, Silvan didn’t tax that ball — nor could Jian Sheng collect it as tax from him.

By now, everyone in the room had demonstrated their role, as evidenced by the vanishing text on the wall.

‘What will the next question be?’

New text appeared on the wall again: Anonymous Thoughts Zone.

“What’s that?” Nu Yue murmured.

Lin Sanjiu didn’t need to look in a mirror to know that her face was rapidly becoming unsightly.

As a buzz of whispers rose among the crowd, a brief explanation also appeared under those three words.

“In this area, members’ subconscious thoughts will be randomly selected and displayed anonymously one at a time at unspecified times.”