In fact, the tax requirements issued by various countries to their lords are not an order, but a ...... Business.

In Pande, the matter of state taxation is still relatively serious.

Because it represents the right to rule.

The one who truly owns a piece of land and its people is called a "kingdom", whether it is a kingdom, a principality, or a kingdom, and only when a state is established and recognized can it be regarded as a complete possession of the land. This can be understood as having full ownership, and the sign is that no taxes are ever paid to anyone.

And a lord who is loyal to other people, even if the title is high, can only be regarded as having the right to use his territory.

The same Earl, Count Metenheim and Count Leon are two completely different concepts.

Mettenheim was an independent county, with Count Guderian and his men having full ownership of Eisenberg Island, while Leon and his allies were currently only entitled to the use of their territory.

The reason why it is called usufruct is because it is still necessary to pay taxes to the superior lord.

It's like a kind of rent, or like a management fee that a branch office needs to pay to a group company.

Leon's superior lord is the king, but although the king no longer has to pay taxes to others, he is not actually the owner of the entire kingdom.

Because nation-building is not something that can be accomplished by one person – it takes a lot of people to work together.

Therefore, a country is not actually owned by the king's family, but by all nobles, and belongs to the nature of a group company.

The aristocracy merged their own enterprises into the group, and together occupied a larger market and benefited together, which was no different from the general group company.

The king is the chairman and general manager of the group company, and the nobles are all shareholders and branch heads, in fact, everyone is a noble lord, and there is no difference between superior and inferior in essence.

However, the chairman and general manager will promulgate the company's decisions on behalf of the board of directors and lead everyone to work, which is a different authority.

The lords gained more territories by gaining new lands and populations through exploration or warfare, and it was like the business of the branch was growing.

As a result, certain branches have become more important and have a higher share of voice within the group, but they are still part of the group; No matter how hard the wings are, the boss of the branch still works in the group.

Since you are in the group, you should of course obey the management of the group and fulfill your work obligations according to the agreement.

Probably the biggest difference from ordinary companies is that the work content is a little different......

The content of these tasks is to respond to the war and complete the tax collection.

Depending on the title of the lord, the criteria for responding to war are different.

According to the rules of the Lion Kingdom, when the state issues a conscription order, the baron must provide ten to forty knights or corresponding troops, depending on his ability; The count was required to provide forty to eighty knights, which was a war obligation.

Specific criteria will have specific requirements depending on the scale of the war.

According to the current situation of the Lion Kingdom, the strength of a knight is generally five to six soldiers - the number of knights in the Lion Kingdom is relatively large among the countries of the Pander Continent.

That is, when the country is at war, a baron must take at least 50 men into battle, and an earl must bring at least 200 men to war.

Of course, the nobles can also take the initiative to raise the standard of work - the baron can also take one or two thousand people to take the initiative to fight for the country and grab land, which belongs to the additional investment of the branch, in order to get more shares and the right to speak.

War is the most important job, just like the core project, and everyone understands that if the core project is not done well, the company is likely to suffer huge losses or even bankruptcy......

Another important job of the lords is to collect taxes, which is part of the daily work and is roughly the same logic as the branch pays the operation and management fee to the group headquarters.

A group company must have a lot of operating expenses, and of course, the operating expenses of the entire group cannot only be borne by the general manager's company, but also by each branch.

Just like a general group company, the group CEO represents the board of directors

Set the corresponding task, and this task will definitely be discussed with the executives most of the time.

The tasks are negotiated according to the budget, and then the individual branches meet the deadlines – as do the country's taxes.

Branch owners who are unable to pay their management fees on time can of course question their sincerity and competence, and may try to replace them or vacate them – if they can do so.

Of course, if the person in charge of the branch has an objection to the standard of the management fee, it can indeed be renegotiated.

In fact, when the tax collector of the kingdom comes to announce the tax standard, it is negotiable, this is not to issue an order, but to bargain.

This is also the reason why the tax collector will announce the standard half a month before the harvest period, in order to negotiate a reasonable plan with the local lord.

Business, it's all negotiated.

It's just that the transportation is not convenient these days, and it is impossible to summon all the lords to come to Lion City for a meeting, so it is common to ask the tax collector to go to various territories to talk.

Of course, negotiations always have to be confident, if in the end it is really impossible to negotiate, the management fee that should be implemented still has to be implemented, and you can't lose the territory, right?

At least nominally, the amount of national tax should indeed be subject to the state arrangement.

However, the tax amount of the national tax is only a total amount of requirements, just like the group gives the branch a task index, then the branch will of course also issue an indicator to each business department.

In fact, most lords do the same, apportioning the total tax to the knights under their own commands, and giving the knights tasks, anyway, the wool comes from the sheep.

It's just that when apportioning, the lords will also add the local tax amount, and usually add more.

On the one hand, if you have to increase taxes anyway to offend your knights, then simply add a little more, anyway, adding two percent and adding two percent to eight will make no difference to the degree of unhappiness that will lead to your subordinates......

On the other hand, there will be room for issuing indicators, lest your subordinates lose money if they fail to complete their tasks......

As a result, when it comes to the knights' collar to collect specific taxes, the tax amount index becomes very heavy, and the further down it goes, the more it is a mandatory order, and there is basically no need to talk about it at the grassroots level.

The knights did not think about national or local taxes, they collected them together, and for them, it was to fulfill the lord's request.

The tax rates in the territory originally had a fixed standard, and random changes could easily cause turmoil, and the common ones were usually poll tax, agricultural tax, commercial tax and so on.

But in order to increase the total, the knights would add a lot of taxes in the name of kings and lords, and sometimes in the name of goddesses......

For example, war tax, goddess tax, sacrificial tax, road and bridge tax, birth tax, excrement and urine tax, chicken and duck tax...... There's everything.

Of course, most knights are not stupid, they still have to live in the same village as the commoners of the territory, and their reputation still needs to be wanted.

And they are the ones who are directly facing the civilian population......

Therefore, they will say that all the taxes are the meaning of the king and the superior lord, indicating that everything is required from above, and it has nothing to do with themselves, and if there is a problem, they will go to the king to find the lord......

As a result, it was the "tyrannical kings" and "greedy nobles" who fell into bad reputations, and the knights were mostly "helpless......

The commoners will also hate the king and the higher lords even more.

The reason why the knights want to increase the amount of money is similar to that of the nobles, anyway, they have to raise the tax amount and cause the commoners to be dissatisfied, so they simply be more ruthless and keep more for themselves.

In other words, when the national tax increases, the local tax increases even more - the lord adds it once, and the knights add it again.

Just like every company's performance tasks fall to the individual executive departments......

The task index given by the group was originally 100, but the branch would increase to 200, the department would increase to 400, and the employee would become 800.

But in fact, it was handed over to the group by 100 ......

As a result, there will also be a leverage phenomenon in taxation:

When the state tax only

When collecting 5% of the per capita annual income of the common people, the total tax that the common people need to pay is about 50% of the annual income, that is, the local tax accounts for 45%;

When the national tax revenue reaches 10% of the per capita annual income of the common people, the total tax to be paid by the common people will account for 75% of the annual income, and the proportion of local tax will rise to 65%;

When the national tax revenue reached 25%, even if the common people used all their income to pay taxes, it was still not enough......

The national tax will act as a lever to leverage the final tax revenue.

The 5 dinars per capita is roughly equivalent to 25 per cent of the per capita annual income of the Pande populace.

This kind of tax will not be accepted by most of the realms and will not dare to accept it - experienced lords know what to expect.

However, Leon himself was not short of money, and the new territory he got was a relatively wealthy place like Changhe Town, so it was not surprising that the royal tax collector would ask for a higher tax amount for him, so the lord did not intend to bargain for the price, so as not to add to the trouble.

He also had the ability to pay taxes without significantly increasing the burden on the civilian population.

But Bailu Fort is different, the border area bears the security of the country...... It is indeed rare for the kingdom to demand five times the heavy tax on such a place.

The tax collector couldn't do anything to extort money until the tax amount was determined, after all, Malbert could go to the Lion City and negotiate the price directly with the king, and he didn't really need to pay attention to the tax collector until a consensus was reached.

"White Deer Fort is also so heavy...... Is this what King Ulrike meant? Heavy taxation of the eastern regions? What does this do? Let the lords go to the Lion City to negotiate with him? It would only ruin his own reputation......

The lord also felt a little inexplicable, this tax target is not a mandatory order, why bother to make people angry with such a high price?

"Who knows...... Probably His Majesty is short of money, maybe he thinks there will be no foreign enemies at present...... I've heard that the amount of tax you receive in Long River is also high, right?"

Malbert was quite well-informed, and shook his head and gestured his palm: "Five times as much as before?"

"That's right, five-fold...... In that case, he is really short of money......

Leon shook his head, it seemed that the king had set a five-fold tax rate for everyone in the eastern region, which was obviously deliberate. The lords in the east happen to be newly changed fiefs, and their foothold is not very stable......

Malbert sighed, "But I heard you've subscribed...... In that case, if I refuse this tax amount, I am afraid it will not be appropriate......

"Malbert, I'll accept this amount of tax just because I can afford it......

Leon understood what Malbert meant, if he accepted the high tax amount this time, I am afraid that many lords in the eastern region would have to accept it - their status is different, and many lords in the east will regard themselves as weather vanes!

"Yes, you can afford it, but I can't...... If I accept this tax and have my men collect it, I am afraid that I will not live for more than a month. Therefore, if I transfer the domain to someone who can afford to pay the tax at this time, the king and the house of nobility will agree......

Malbert pulled a paperwork out of his bosom: "This is the assignment agreement."

"But that person can't be me, Malbert, you can tell...... The king doesn't want me to stay in White Hart."

The lord shook his head again.

"Of course not you...... I mean, I can transfer Fort Whitedeer to Miss Amy—I'll trade Fort Whitedeer for shares in Lord Godric's hands, and trade those shares for those shops and businesses in the Northwest, and Master Godric will "break the relationship" with you. I think it's just what you and Mistress Godric want, and it's just right for the scene you're playing......

There was a smile on Malbert's face: "After all, the two of you have fallen out, so Master Godric will no longer cooperate with you, this is normal!" And he has had feelings for White Deer Fort for so many years, and it is normal for his daughter to take White Deer Fort back from me...... Both the king and the House of Lords would agree, and Amy is the king's niece......

"You have a point......

The lord nodded and laughed.

Malbert was really smart, not only did he realize so quickly that he didn't benefit from getting White Hart Castle, but he also guessed what Leon and Godric were about to do, so he took the initiative to trade Leon in advance.

- At this time, if he trades, he can get the maximum benefit, and he can choose what he wants.

When he is in danger in White Hart Castle, such as the attack of the Bacchus Empire or the "trouble" of the Noldor Elves, or the high tax that leads to ***, White Hart Fort is worthless.

Not obsessed with territory, but trying to find ways to get the most benefit for themselves, Malbert and Brennus are really father and son.

In fact, Leon's original plan was to let White Hart Castle encounter an "enemy invasion" after a while, and then let Amy take the opportunity to buy White Hart Fort from Malbert with Godric's shares......

But he didn't expect King Ulrike to make a high national tax, which directly scared Malbert away, and he wanted to exchange the unprofitable White Hart Fort for those casino stores in the northwest region, then this business can also be done.

"So...... As you wish, Malbert."

The lord doesn't care too much about taxes, and in his opinion, the problems that can be solved with money are not big problems.

After all, his bank was about to open.

Moreover, the increase in taxes in the kingdom as a whole is not necessarily a bad thing for Leon......

……

White Deer Fort.

In the center of the castle, there is already a sturdy stone building with a huge signboard - Pande Bank.

The emblem used is also straightforward, and it looks like a gold coin surrounded by ears of rice......

In the name of Pande, of course, it is because this is the continent of Pande.

Although Leon had already gotten the town of Changhe, he did not move the bank's headquarters and remained in Fort White Deer.

Changhe Town just got a business point next door to Changhe Express, which was barely a branch.

Amy also came back just in time for the bank to open.

She signed a pact with Malbert and returned to take over her territory, bringing back news of Talon and Darkfalcon.

The situation is good, and what Amy brings back is basically good news.

Talon Forts has been renovated by the captives, and two hundred female soldiers have cleaned up the surrounding area, and civilians have begun to move to Talon Fort.

The name of Countess Valera is quite good in the Gulf of Tonkin and in fact Amy herself already has a legend......

In the villages and towns of the Gulf of Tonkin there is a rumor that Amy is the rebirth of the soul of Countess Valera, a knightess with a new falcon talon, who is doing exactly the same thing as Valera, and that she is still a royal knight......

A true royal knight indeed, Amy now wields an iris flag.

But Amy is not a knight under Leon and Godric, but a guardian knight of Princess Filina, which is the inheritance of Godric himself, and the fleur-de-lis is the one that Godric used when he became Princess Filina's guardian knight.

Amy didn't have the blank paperwork that Leon sent her, so she used the blank paperwork as a promise to the female soldiers, and Amy would write her name directly to the female soldiers who had made a meritorious achievement.

It was a knightly edict signed by the two chiefs of military affairs in the eastern and northern regions, and it was more reliable than any other order, so the attraction of this new falcon talon was perhaps a little greater than that of Valera's time......

Sarah used to recruit people with that blank paperwork, and everywhere she went, she was very enthusiastic, and it could even be said that she was the audition site.

Amy now has 400 people under her command, and if she hadn't stopped recruiting in time, it would not have been impossible to pull out thousands of people, but in order to maintain the good habit of bringing the old with the new one-to-one, Amy did not blindly expand the number.

In fact, Amy herself is a princess, and she has surrendered herself by becoming a female knight.

But becoming a lordess like Valera was her wish after all, and she seemed to have achieved it......

She is now the true Lord of Fort White Hart, and the Talon of Bivalera seems

It's a little stronger.

"Leon...... Tsk, if the Earl doesn't move the bank's headquarters to Changhe Town, it's going to do bad things on my territory, right?"

Amy seemed to be very lively, and she was actively joking with Leon.

"I'm known to be an honest man...... How can you do something bad?"

The lord's face was full of shock, "Amy, who do you think of me?"

"Honest man? That's not what it says out there...... As soon as I came back, I heard that you were beaten up by my father? Aha...... I also heard that the beautiful women around you are like clouds? And became a famous Yin thief?"

Amy grinned at Leon's face.

In fact, the wound on his face has long healed, and he can't see anything at all.

"Ahem, that's all acting...... Didn't Master Godric tell you?"

Leon smiled awkwardly.

"He said you were playing on the scene – but that doesn't sound like a good word...... Leon, you have to reassure the king, I understand...... But what do I do now? Am I not going to be able to be with you anymore?"

Amy was still grinning, but there seemed to be some concern in her words.

"This ......"

The lord was stunned for a moment, "Amy, what are you worried about?"

"I'm worried...... I...... Well, my father said he was retiring and was going to take my mother and brother to Talon Castle, but he asked me to come to White Hart Castle alone."

Amy began to pull her hair, straightening it, curling it up, wrapping it around her fingers, then straightening it again, and rolling it up again......

"You're the Lord of White Deer Castle...... What's wrong with that? Didn't you manage White Deer Fort alone?"

The lord was a little confused.

"Before...... It used to be the two of us in White Deer Castle......

Amy sighed, pouted and pulled her hair, and walked away worriedly.

She now wore her long hair loose behind her back and didn't tie it up as usual.