Breakfast is actually quite simple. I didn't choose to eat yogurt as I used to, but cooked rice porridge, paired with salty pork and two strange-looking eggs. The eggs had a colorful surface, resembling candies. However, the taste was okay, similar to that of chicken eggs.

I placed breakfast on the table, and even Lia couldn't resist the temptation of food and had to sit opposite Vilvy. Instead of sitting directly at the table, I walked to the window and looked outside. From here, I couldn't directly see the town outside, but I could see the sky.

"What are you looking at, father?"

At this moment, Lia ran to my side with her bowl and asked, puzzled, as she also looked outside. In Lia's eyes, the outside was just a barren flower bed, but it was not a wasteland in my eyes. No, it would be more accurate to say that the real wasteland was not on the ground, but in the sky. The sky was the true wasteland at this moment.

"I'm looking at the cooking smoke, Lia."

I crouched down, pointed at the sky, and said softly, "Lia, it should be the time to start preparing for the day's work at this time. That means there should be cooking smoke rising from people's homes in the sky. But look, except for us, no chimneys are emitting smoke. What does that mean? It means that the people below no longer have enough food to cook, or even enough firewood to make a fire. In other words, without our food, they may not survive this winter."

"Then distribute it."

Vilvy calmly placed her bowl on the table and said, "Distribute it evenly, leaving ourselves with our share, and giving the rest away."

"Even distribution is not the best solution."

I shook my head, turned around, and said, "Because everyone is not equal to begin with. Some households had a good harvest this year and caught more game, while others had less land and fewer harvests. Some households have more people, while others have fewer. Equal distribution would be unfair for many people."

Although equal distribution was indeed a very normal practice at this time, it would lead to grievances. Some people who clearly had a good harvest received less, while some who originally had no food received something. This was unfair to those who worked diligently in farming. Although they would be happy when they were poor and hungry and received food, they would start to complain after being fed and clothed. This kind of equal distribution only solved a temporary problem. For the lord, the people's evaluation afterwards was the most important thing.

It would be great if we had a ledger, but I believed those deserters wouldn't have prepared such a thing as a ledger. So, I had no idea how many people received items. In terms of distribution, it would be best if everyone could accept it without complaints and feel at ease.

Also, I wanted someone to repair this place. Leaving aside everything else, at least the hall should be cleaned, and the rooms on the second floor should be tidied up. Then there were the stairs and the floor that seemed to have been neglected for a long time. Although it was impossible to completely renovate it during winter, it was necessary to repair it so that we could survive this winter.

"...Then you figure it out."

Vilvy decisively gave up thinking and handed all the work to me. I sighed, realizing that I really had no way to resist. After all, I was just a slave.

At that moment, someone knocked on our door. Vilvy instinctively stood up and reached for the hilt of her sword, while I walked to the door and opened it. Outside the door stood a thin man wearing a gray robe and a thin red scarf. His pants had a few holes, and his shoes were worn-out. His nose was red from the cold, and he occasionally sniffed his own snot. His gray eyes seemed lifeless. When he saw me open the door, he respectfully said, "Greetings, my lord. I am the town's recorder."

"No, no, I'm not the lord. The lord is here," I shook my head, turned around, and pointed at Vilvy. Vilvy cautiously looked at the man in front of her, as if carefully examining him to make sure he posed no threat before relaxing, although her hand still remained on her sword hilt. However, the man in front of her was shocked and looked at Vilvy with surprise. He rubbed his hands, smiled awkwardly, and said, "Uh, uh, great hero, no, my lord, um, I am the town's recorder...""Tell him."

Vilvy simply ignored her and sat down to continue eating his porridge, even if it was just plain boiled water. He had a good appetite. I sighed and looked at the clerk in front of me, saying, "Then talk to me instead. By the way, are you responsible for the records in this town? You should know about these food supplies, right?"

"Oh, I know," the clerk replied.

Sniffing his nose, the clerk looked enviously at the burlap sacks on the side and said, "The deserters took all the food, which was our town's harvest for the year. But fortunately, we still have plenty of fruits and beans, as well as some food that was not taken. We can survive this winter."

"No, no, no. I'm not asking if you can make it through this winter," I said, puzzled by the clerk's strange words. It should have been about reclaiming the food that was stolen. Why didn't he think they should get it back? But at this moment, the clerk seemed to believe that the food didn't belong to the townspeople and had no intention of getting it back.

"So, what do you mean?" I asked.

"These supplies are not supposed to be returned, right? The soldiers took them. We are not thieves. We are your lords," I told the clerk directly, then continued, "Do you have any account books? You are the clerk, after all. You don't have records of the income, but does this mean you don't even record how much income there is? I intend to distribute these food supplies based on the income."

The clerk looked at me awkwardly and said with a wry smile, "You're too kind... But it's fine if these food supplies aren't returned. Nobody wants to take them back... Once we eat them, they will be gone. It's better to use them as taxes... These food supplies can repay the debts of ten years, right..."

"What?" I blanked out for a moment, pointing at the sacks of food and angrily said, "Are you telling me that the townspeople owe ten years of taxes?! Are you telling me how this town managed to owe taxes for ten years?! If taxes are owed for ten years, this town is already finished!"

"No, it's twenty years. Everyone in this town has owed twenty years of taxes... Though taxes are paid every year, the taxes paid each year cannot match the interests and principal... If the adults are willing to give up those twenty years of taxes, it would be for the best... Because if you continue to delay, the years will just keep piling up..."

"Give me the account books."

I felt a headache coming on. I couldn't understand the situation of this town anymore. While it's possible for one bad harvest due to weather, a town owing taxes for twenty years and being unable to pay back is a huge problem. Owing taxes for twenty years is an issue, how did it come to that? If taxes are owed for one year, they can simply pay extra the next year, but how did they end up owing for twenty years?!

The man searched his pockets and took out a tattered little book. I took it and flipped through it. Seeing the tax rate of 40% for a whole year, I was dumbfounded. I could believe that this was a usurious loan company scamming people, but how can a town government collect anything with a 40% interest rate? Even if they wanted to extort money like this, it would lead to problems. Only the most foolish lord would think of squeezing every last penny from the people. How much money could the people possibly have? How rich could they become by squeezing them?

"This has become a bad debt."

I threw the account book in front of me into the distant fireplace, touched my head helplessly, and said, "Don't you really want to get back these food supplies? Even if I destroy these bills and stop collecting, are you still not willing?"

"Then... then what about this year's taxes... How much should we collect? How should we calculate the previous years' taxes? And also, I don't have any income account book... How should I distribute them?"

He looked at me in shock, trembling and not knowing what to say.

I scratched my head and said, "What's the town's financial situation now? Where's the money?"

"The money... was long gone..."

"Who are you trying to fool? Owing taxes for twenty years, yet still collecting taxes each year. Where did all that money go? Are you telling me that you collected taxes in the form of food and wood?"

Note: This is a translation, and the original work belongs to the author."It was taken away long ago, no taxes have been paid this year..."

"...Who was the previous lord here?"

"...It...it was the army...the army..."

I understand now. It seems this place used to be a frontline, where an army far away plundered all the coins. So, the problem the town is facing now is that the lord has no money, the people have no money, and the whole town is stagnant. It's not even easy to have any trade, let alone attracting investments.

But without currency, there is no trade. Do I have to resort to bartering like primitive people? Then what's the difference between us and the cavemen?

I need to find a way to obtain some money, and these coins must have absolute value. After all, coins themselves are just metals and papers. What truly matters is the power of the country behind the coins and the tangible value of the goods. So, what can I use in the current situation to compensate for the lack of currency?

I thought of something.

Now, when it comes to scarcity of food, the most solid commodity is food. The food right now is in the lord's house, which means food is the most reliable tangible value. Money is just the vehicle for this tangible economy, so it becomes the vehicle for this food.

I suddenly realized something.

Or rather, as a Chinese person, why didn't I think of this?

"Food..."

I grabbed the shoulder of the man in front of me and exclaimed, "Tell me, tell me, how much flour does it take to make a bread? How many breads does one person need in a day to meet basic requirements?"

"Well...um...probably...probably...one person...five hundred 'pu', five hundred 'pu' a day should be enough..."

"Alright."

I clapped my hands and said, "Then for the next period of time, you come over, and by the way, gather everyone...uh...never mind, gather them at the empty lot near the town gate. I have something to say to everyone. Got it?"

"Alright...I understand...Should I inform everyone?"

"Of course, this matter is related to your future lives."

The man nodded in confusion, then quickly left the house. Meanwhile, I searched the whole room but couldn't find it, so I tore off a bedsheet and brought it back.

Vilvy and Lia looked at me with confusion. I cleared the table and laid the bedsheet on it, then said to Vilvy and Lia, "Come on, both of you, unfortunately, I need help from two people. Help me cut this bedsheet into pieces of similar sizes, then write the numbers 50 and 100 on them, and finally use something of Vilvy's to leave an imprint on them."

"What is this..."

Vilvy looked at me in confusion and asked.

I looked at her and laughed softly, "This is...food."