The Breeze of Dusk with the Scent of Musk

Chapter 16: Discovering the Occult Magic

In the Crown Kingdom in the Peace Province in the Jasmine City, Zixin Quon, the new emperor of the Chinese Empire, sets the rules of the Empire as he wishes. Zixin wants to gain people's love and allegiance and force them to forget about the bygone era of Emperor Wei Jian. One way to gain people's love and allegiance is to bestow money on them or help them save money. Therefore, Zixin issued a significant imperial edict that is effective across the five kingdoms in the Chinese Empire which states that all taxes across the five kingdoms in the Chinese Empire must be halved. Reducing the taxes by half helps people save more money for themselves while at the same time receive the same services from the government. This imperial edict makes people rejoice greatly and admire Zixin tremendously. It is a tangible proof that the reign of Zixin brings greater benefits to people's lives than the bygone era of Emperor Wei Jian.

However, this imperial edict will result in decreasing the money supply in the treasury. For example, if the treasury receives ten billion golden taels of taxes per year normally, it will receive five billion golden taels after this imperial edict is effective. So how will Zixin offset this great deficit in the treasury? The answer is: the magical stick is to rescue. Zixin wants to take full advantage of his magical stick that turns stones into gold. This magical stick makes Zixin have virtually unlimited money supply. So whatever deficit in the treasury that is incurred as a result of the imperial edict will be completely covered by the gold generated from Zixin's magical stick. Stones are cheap and ubiquitous and converting them into gold in the blink of an eye is a fairly easy process with the aid of the magical stick. One night, Zixin had a chat with his wife, Xiulan Yongnian, about the new imperial edict.

Zixin: Xiulan, what do you think about the new imperial edict I have issued?

Xiulan: I always have admired your wisdom and the way you think and make decisions. I hope this edict will be fruitful and let you win people's love and allegiance as planned.

Zixin: My magical stick opens for me numerous doors of opportunities and I must make the most out of it. That is the logical step.

Xiulan: Right. You are blessed to have such a magical stick. I think over time you can rule the entire world.

Zixin: Thank you for the compliment. For now, I am content with ruling the Chinese Empire and am not thinking about any expansion beyond the borders of the Chinese Empire. Remember, Xiulan, that the internal affairs of the country have not stabilized completely yet. There are political dissidents across the nation from the armies of Emperor Wei Jian who oppose me and wish to depose me. I must handle those internal affairs in the right way so that I do not exacerbate the situation by any wrong policies.

Xiulan: I know the pain of having political dissidents. It deprives you of sleep at night. I hope they will surrender to us soon so that we no longer need to worry about their threat to our throne.

Zixin: Hope is the first step to achieve a goal. The second step is taking serious actions. I must handle the matter of political dissidents wisely later in the future. It is one of the main items on my agenda.

Xiulan: May success be your companion all the way. I am confident about your ability to have dreams and realize them. Look at how far we have reached after being an ordinary family. Now we are at the top of the pyramid of the Chinese Empire.

Zixin: In order for the pyramid to stand strong and last, it must have strong bases. I need to consolidate my roots as the emperor of the Chinese Empire as much as I can.

Xiulan: Let your wisdom guide your way. You do not know the impossible, my sweetheart!

Once the imperial edict of tax reduction has been proclaimed, people became extremely happy. They admired the wisdom of Zixin and his intention to bring tangible benefits to their lives in practice. People across the Chinese Empire started to talk about the imperial edict and its effects on their lives. Here is a snapshot of a conversation between a husband and his wife in this regard: