BXBX NOVEL Chapter 271 - 181: Asking People to Help Us Cut_2
After a strict interrogation, it was revealed that they were men of Duke Leite.
The Kingdom of Leite is located upstream of the East River, adjacent to the Black Mountain Kingdom, and across the river from the former headquarters of the Fallen Legion. Since the Black Mountain Kingdom was devastated by insect plague, only the Kingdom of Leite remains upstream of the East River.
Unlike the Black Mountain Kingdom, the Kingdom of Leite is a ‘normal’ country with vast territory and a large population. Due to its terrain, it has a wealth of agricultural and pastoral resources, making it an agricultural country.
As we all know, while agriculture ensures a means of livelihood, wealth is hard to come by. Therefore, the Kingdom of Leite is quite poor. Compared to the elves and dwarves who have mines at home, or the human nations where handicrafts are thriving, the Kingdom of Leite is like a beggar lying on a sack of grain.
In the past half a year, officials from the Kingdom of Leite noticed some wealthy merchants and nobles appearing in their nation’s docks and taverns. Some of them rented or bought ships here and sailed downstream.
Some people were even asking about the Goddess of Beauty, Beauty City, all sorts of magic for freckle removal, skin whitening, wrinkle elimination, hair regrowth, height increase, plastic surgery, and so on. All these things sounded like miracles.
At first, no one took it seriously, it was considered as a rumor spread by those impoverished desert thieves in the desert, to attract some “fat sheep” to cross the border and get robbed.
Until the Duke’s seventy-year-old mother secretly took someone for a trip and returned 30 years younger, she was stopped outside the castle.
The outraged Duchess stood outside the city, revealing all her son’s secrets like how often he wet the bed as a child, when he started having wet dreams, how many lovers and illegitimate children he had… No one dared to doubt her identity as the Duchess anymore.
The appearance of the Duchess caused a commotion in the harem. The Duke’s main wife and mistress completely lost their minds. If the Duchess wasn’t as ferocious as before when scolding people, they would have highly doubted whether this was another mistress of the Duke. After all, the Duchess, who now looked only forty, matched perfectly with the fifty-year-old Duke.
After the initial doubt came excitement. Who wouldn’t want to look thirty years younger? Who wouldn’t want flawless, tender skin on their face? Who wouldn’t want their facial shape lifted and eye bags removed?
Everyone wanted to, and it was a disaster for Duke Leite. If he emptied the national treasury, it would still not be enough for his main wife and mistress to make a trip to Beauty City, let alone the treatments for hair regrowth, size increase, and height enhancement?
The fifty-year-old bald, stout Duke Leite also wanted to go.
In the end, he chose the Duchess to check things out. For this decision, his twenty-year-old mistress tortured him for two nights nonstop, leaving him barely able to work. He hid in the office and worked overtime for a few days before he regained his strength.
Why did he choose the Duchess? Because the effects of the beauty treatment would be more evident on her due to her age. As for his mother, she ran away secretly last time, only bringing her personal maid. They were too astonished to notice any details.
This time, the Duchess was accompanied by seasoned politicians and experienced adventurers.
Before long, the Duchess, thirty years younger but retaining the carriage and charm of a mature woman, returned. She was like an imperial flower in full bloom, outshining all others.
The Duke was so infatuated that it took him a few days to come to his senses. Upon closer inspection, he found differences between the Duchess’ ‘youth’ and actual youth.
The Duchess clearly lacked the burning passion and vitality of his young lover. Her skin was tight but not as elastic and moist as the young lover. However, because of her experience she was extremely attuned to his needs.
The realization excited the Duke further; it meant his wife was still his wife, and not a different person. This was truly a miracle, not some kind of dark magic.
Duke Leite couldn’t wait to immediately fly to Beauty City, but after going through the national treasury, he discovered he was too poor.
According to the prices of different packages, he needed at least six hundred thousand Demon Crystals. His mother had spent as much, but she had used her private money. The national treasury of Duke Leite didn’t have much more than his mother’s private wealth.
This was not only a pursuit of beauty but also a business opportunity that tantalized the Duke. He briefly considered launching an army to take over Beauty City, but he dismissed the idea. Being poor, he couldn’t afford to wage a war, especially one that would require marching deep into the desert, even with waterways.
At this point, the Duke’s administrative officer proposed a genius idea.
“Upstream of the East River, only we, Leite, and the Black Mountain Kingdom remain. The Black Mountain Kingdom is dealing with an insect plague and doesn’t even have enough rice to eat. If we burn the paddy fields along the river bank, they will have to buy food on a massive scale. Transporting grain by the river is the most cost-effective method. We can raise the prices multiple times and earn back the Demon Crystals.”
“Good idea, but I heard there are large paddy fields around the Fallen Dragon Lake too. We have to burn all the paddy fields.”
“Don’t joke around. The Fallen Dragon Lake is a saltwater lake. How could it be possible to grow crops there? It’s probably just some salt-resistant water grass.”
“Alright, let’s do it. Setting fires along the river, and the Water Flame Spell is the most useful.”
That’s the story of how these two arsonists ended up here.
What baffled Ange the most is, ‘”Beauty City?”‘
Negris scratched his head sheepishly, “It’s an industry created by Lisa and the others to accommodate those feuding refugees. Infrastructure construction is the most tedious part, so we let them build the city.”