He changed Tiwat

Set design: Moon Sea Pavilion, Jade Balance Star's office.

Characters: Master Ke, Secretary Han.

Secretary Han, dressed in the Yuehaiting uniform, stood in front of the desk with a deep, thoughtful expression.

The master carver sat upright in a pine wood armchair with vermilion lacquer, looked up and asked, "Mr. Han, what is the most important thing in developing the 'Guili New District'?"

Secretary Han snapped out of his daze, hesitated for a moment, and replied, "Make money!"

Master Carver: "Stop! You're not going to say 'wooing the wealthy and powerful, creating various pretexts, and splitting the profits 30/70' again, are you?"

Secretary Han: "No, no, what you're talking about is what happened when we were making the 'Flight of the Moon.' The gentry took the lead in donating money, and called on the people of Liyue Harbor to follow suit. The 'Flight of the Moon' was a big firework, and since fireworks are going to explode anyway, nobody knew how many Mora it was worth. Afterwards, the gentry's money was returned in full, and the people's money was split 30/70, and nobody pursued the matter... 'Guili New District' is different. This time, we'll do something innovative."

Carver: "How will you innovate this time?"

Secretary Han: "This time, I'll just say six words: 'Sell the land, build a house!'"

The carver said, "Who's going to buy land and build a house in this desolate place called Guiliyuan?"

Secretary Han smiled mysteriously: "You're from Yuheng Star, in charge of land development in Liyue. With this (pointing to the 'Guili New District' development documents on the table), you'll have legitimate business to do—not just legitimate, but also surprising."

Master Ke stood up and patted Secretary Han on the shoulder: "Mr. Han, you'd better translate for me again what 'surprise' means."

Secretary Han: "With this (pointing to his uniform), we're from the government, right?"

The engraver said, "It's the government!"

Secretary Han: "Isn't it fair for the government to collect taxes? We'll collect a 'city entry tax'!"

Master Carver tilted his head: "So you mean we have to pay a toll just to enter the city gate? We're the most open trading port on the Teyvat continent, we can't do that!"

Secretary Han: "How can we accept it like that? In Mondstadt it's called 'Transfer Payment,' but we call it 'transfer payment.'"

Carver: "How do you collect it?"

Secretary Han: "Think about it, those farmers who come to Liyue Harbor from Qiaoying Manor and Qingce Manor to work, they need to rent a house to work in Liyue Harbor, right? They need to spend money on food, right? And the money they save needs to be deposited in a bank, right? All the money they spend on food, clothing, housing, and transportation becomes taxes! Isn't the infrastructure funding you manage all from this money?"

Master Carver: "What does this have to do with 'transfer payments'?"

Secretary Han: "Oh dear, you've used all this money for infrastructure and public services in Liyue Harbor, haven't you? Look, Qingce Village doesn't even have a school, while Liyue Harbor has the renowned 'Tongwen Academy' from Teyvat; look, Qingce Village doesn't even have a doctor, while 'Bubu's Lodge' in Liyue Harbor occupies such a large area; in Qingce Village you have to empty your own chamber pot, but we have a sewer system in Liyue Harbor! Isn't that good infrastructure and public services?"

Master Carver puffed out his chest: "That's right!"

Secretary Han: "With these infrastructure projects and services, won't everyone flock to Liyue Harbor? Won't the land in Liyue Harbor become more expensive, and won't house prices rise? If house prices rise, won't those who sell houses and collect rents make a fortune?"

Master Carver: "Oh, so it means that people without houses can transfer money to people who have houses, that kind of 'transfer payment'!"

Secretary Han: "That's right, everyone entering Liyue Harbor from Qingce Village has to pay this 'city entry tax'!"

The engraver said, "But the wealthy and powerful people of Yujingtai and Feiyunpo also paid a lot of commodity tax and business tax, didn't they? And they always say that they paid taxes to the government for infrastructure construction and to provide welfare for the rural people who came to the city, thus spending money to support those people."

Secretary Han: "They can add taxes to the price of goods and rent, but in the end, it's still the laborers from Qingce Village who pay for it. Look at that Zhiruo from the Guhua faction, can she afford a house in Liyue Harbor after serving dishes in 'Three Bowls and You Can't Cross the Harbor' her whole life? In the end, won't she have to go back to her hometown in the countryside? Can she enjoy the expenses she spends in the city? Isn't it all transferred to the hands of the wealthy gentry?"

Master Carver: "I understand, but there isn't even a city in 'Gui Li New District'..."

Secretary Han: "Hey, let's get the tax revenue going first, then we can talk about city construction!"

The engraver: "But..."

Secretary Han: "Are you saying that the people of Liyue Harbor are poor, and we definitely won't be able to collect any money from them?"

Carver: "You're not thinking of saying... 'Whoever has the money, I'll take their work', are you?"

Secretary Han: "Yes and no."

The engraver asked, "What do you mean?"

Secretary Han: "The usual procedure is to ask the wealthy gentry for the money first, and then return it in full."

Carver: "How do you want it?"

Secretary Han: "Think about what you have?"

The engraver thought for a moment, then took a sword from his box and roared, "There's a sword, and the Thousand Rock Army..."

Secretary Han quickly pressed down her hand: "What? You still want to lead the Thousand Rock Army to seize the Jade Pavilion? We have land! Under the entire sky of Liyue, all land belongs to the Emperor! The land in Guili Plain is all under the government's name; if we have land, we don't need to forcibly seize it. We'll divide this land into plots, and then rent them out one plot at a time, collecting the rent for seventy years at once. Whoever bids the highest gets it..."

The carver said, "You yourself said the people have no money, so who would come to rent land from Guiliyuan? And you want seventy years' worth of rent upfront? Who would pay that money unless they held a sword to their head?"

Secretary Han shook his head: "Anyone could rent this land. Remember how Ningguang tendered the land when Qunyu Pavilion was being rebuilt? I call it 'bidding-auction-listing.' Ningguang will definitely rent it. Think about it, she'll get a 70-year land use right, and immediately announce that she's going to build a house, a high-end, grand, and classy Qunyu Pavilion-style manor castle. She'll finish the plans, and she can start selling a single unit as soon as she finishes it..."

Master Carver: "In this way, Ningguang can earn back the money she spent on renting the land with interest in one go, so she will definitely rent our land!"

Secretary Han: "Lady Keqing is brilliant! Ningguang not only earned back the money for renting the land, but she also got to get the construction costs for the house first. How could she not want that?"

Master Carver: "But even if she rents the land and builds the house, who will buy it?"

Secretary Han: "Of course, it's the people of Liyue Harbor."

The carver asked, "Where do ordinary people get the money to buy a house?"

Secretary Han: "Don't we have the Liyue National Bank?"

Secretary Han gestured animatedly, "We lend money! We lend money to people to buy houses, the houses become collateral, the land is transferred back to our account, and we can collect monthly payments."

The engraver gave Secretary Han a thumbs up: "No need for knives or guns, just collude with the wealthy and powerful, and it's all done openly and legitimately... Brilliant!"

But soon, the carver hesitated again: "Mr. Han, isn't what we're doing unfair to the people?"

Secretary Han: "That's fair! If you want to do things for the people, you have to spend money, right? Building roads, bridges, schools, hospitals... everything costs money. Who pays for it, you or me? We can't raise money without selling land!"

The carver nodded: "That's right. Once we get the money, we can build roads, bridges, hospitals, and schools... Our 'Guili New District' will prosper! When it prospers, house prices will rise, and it wouldn't be right if house prices rose and land prices didn't, would it?"

Secretary Han shook her head dramatically: "No, absolutely no!"

Master Carver: "When the other Seven Stars saw that Ningguang could make a fortune just by drawing up a show flat, they will definitely rush to grab the second and third plots. At that time, I will send Jiang Zhou and Wang Ya to infiltrate and drive up the price... Heh! I'm not afraid that the price will not double."

Secretary Han: "I have another plan. Before we build the city, we should first designate a few key areas in the 'Guili New District' near Luhuachi and Tsinghua University. We can then focus on building those areas. When people from other places see this, they'll think, 'Wow, this place is well-built!' and they'll all flock here... Hehe, only those with money can squeeze in, and the prices will rise even further."

The carver said, "If prices keep rising, where will ordinary people get so much money? We don't have that much money to lend them either."

Secretary Han: "We don't have much Mora, but we have as much paper money as we want."

Master Carver: "Mr. Han means... that money can be printed directly by the bank?"

Secretary Han nodded.

The engraver looked puzzled: "Since the bank can print money, why don't we just print it directly? Why bother with all this trouble?"

Secretary Han: "If you print paper money directly, it won't be effective because it's just waste paper. Only when people use their houses as collateral to borrow paper money from banks will it have real value. Why could people spend the Liyue currency they used in the past? Because if a banknote was said to be worth 10,000 Mora, there would be 10,000 Mora in the bank's vault."

Master Carver: "But if that happens, there will be more and more money in the market. In addition to the increase in house prices, the prices of cart pullers will also increase, the prices of vegetable sellers will also increase, and the services on the pearl-adorned boats... will all increase in price."

Secretary Han: "But these people make money! Once they make money, more people will go into jobs like pulling carts, growing vegetables, and providing entertainment services... and the market will go up. The more money the people earn, the more harmonious Liyue will become. Ningguang and Rouran have made a lot of money by taking land from us, essentially getting something for nothing. They'll naturally be more considerate of us in the future."

Master Carver: "Then aren't we just like the landlords? The common people indirectly use the government's land through Ningguang and Rouran, and then pay rent to the government every month. What's the difference between this and farmers being tenants of landlords? The common people must hate us to death!"

Secretary Han: "Lord Keqing, you can't speak carelessly. My method is far superior to the landlords' way of collecting rent. In ancient times, landlords directly collected half of their tenants' harvest as rent, and during famine years, they even lent money at exorbitant interest rates. If the farmers couldn't repay the money, they were forced to sell their children to pay off the debt. The common people truly felt the exploitation of the landlords, so of course they hated them to death. Our method is different!"

The engraver asked, "What's different?"

Secretary Han waved his hand: "First of all, when ordinary people buy houses, the money goes to Ningguang and his group of developers. The housing prices are too high? That's the fault of the developers and speculators! Without our banks lending them money, would they be able to afford new homes? Secondly, ordinary people will treat their houses as assets, so naturally they'll stand with us! The more expensive the houses are, the happier they'll be. As long as they sell for even higher prices later, making them feel they can resell them for profit, they might even believe that working 996 is a blessing!"

Master Carver clapped his hands: "I see! If we just ask them to pay taxes, they'll feel like their hard-earned money has been emptied. But if they empty their savings and take on huge debts, it's their own property, and they feel differently! Tenants feel like their hard-earned money is being taken away when they pay rent every month. Residents of the 'Guili New District' feel like they're protecting their assets through their hard work after paying their mortgages every month. Secretary Han, brilliant!"

Secretary Han quickly replied modestly, "You flatter me, Lady Keqing. It's all thanks to your courage and decisiveness, Lady Keqing! You're truly remarkable!"

Master Carver: "But for this deal to go through, we need Ningguang and the others to agree. Are they willing to be the developers and take the blame for us?"

Secretary Han: "They can make money, so what's there to be unhappy about? Let the people suffer a little more, and let them bear the blame."

As they were talking, the engraver grabbed the dragon's roar from the box and was about to leave.

Secretary Han: Where are you going?

The engraver said, "Let's go to the Jade Pavilion for Ningguang's 'Feast at Hongmen.' Secretary Han, you have to come with me. You—are my advisor."

As they walked, Secretary Han asked, "What kind of trap are you having? Did they invite you?"

The master carver didn't even turn his head: "Remember those three moves we used? It's on me!"

Secretary Han made a feinting strike: "Beheading!"

The engraver's eyes gleamed: "I'll take you as my dog!"

Scene change: Qunyu Pavilion, restaurant.

Characters: Ningguang, Master Ke, Secretary Han.

Ningguang, dressed in a gold-inlaid jade cheongsam, exuded an air of nobility and greeted us from afar at the door.

Ningguang: "Sister, I want to congratulate Yuheng first! You've definitely hit the jackpot!"

The engraver said, "Ningguang, you're joking. Everyone in Liyue knows that all the money goes into your pocket, Ningguang."

Ningguang: "Oh dear, it sounds glamorous, but every day when I open my eyes, hundreds of thousands of people are counting on me for their livelihood. The pressure is immense."

Master Ke: "To be honest, Sister Ningguang, I became the Jade Balance Star just to make money! Secretary Han said we should make money from the common people, but I said, I'll make money from whoever has money. The common people don't have money, so you, Ningguang, will make money from them for the next few decades. That's why you have money."

Ningguang: "Oh? How does Sister Yuheng plan to earn this? I'm all ears."

Master Carver: "Secretary Han, who taught you that trick of selling land and building houses?"

Secretary Han: "The Kingdom of Zhidong! In order to raise funds for the army of the Foolish People to meet their fiscal expenditures, the Kingdom of Zhidong has been selling land on a large scale. We all learned from them."

Master Carver: "What happens after the Kingdom of Winter stops selling land?"

Secretary Han: "Collect taxes—property tax!"

The engraver said, "That's right, I'm here to collect Ningguang's tax."

Ningguang: "Hahaha, you're not the first Seven Stars to try and collect a property tax. And you won't be the last. You're not going to collect it!"

The carver said, "You can't accept it? Tell me why I can't accept it."

Ningguang: "First of all, selling land is more profitable than collecting taxes. Property tax cannot replace the income from selling land. My three henchmen have calculated that, based on the original land area approved for you in Guili, you would have to collect 20% of the tax to match the land sales revenue. You can't collect money like that! Secondly, this tax has already been collected once in the land transfer and housing transaction process. Is Yuheng Star trying to discourage the people by collecting it again?"

The engraver said, "What if I dared?"

Ningguang shook her head: "Most importantly, now that you're collecting taxes, the cost of holding property will increase dramatically. Those who bought property early will rush to sell, and property prices will plummet. I, Ningguang, am a businesswoman; business has its profits and losses, and I accept losing money... But Yuheng, don't forget, the paper money used to buy houses is borrowed by ordinary people using their homes as collateral! If the value of the collateral drops significantly, will the paper money still be the same? If you cause the banks to go bankrupt and the people's savings to be wiped out, then you will be the enemy of Liyue!"

The engraver remained silent.

Ningguang laughed loudly: "You're still too young, your thinking is too simplistic, and sometimes you seem too naive. Now look at you, in managing the economy, you not only have to rely on me, you also have to protect me..."

The engraver turned to Secretary Han and asked, "Mr. Han, is Sister Ningguang telling the truth?"

Secretary Han: "It's true."

Carver: "What do you mean?"

Secretary Han: "Lady Ningguang's scheme has three steps. First, she turns the house into a tradable asset, which can be used as collateral to borrow money from the bank. Second, she turns this money into transferable notes, such as house deeds and land deeds. Third, she turns these notes into 'currency,' which she can use to pay off other people's debts, making this 'currency' circulate!"

Master carver: "What does that have to do with us?"

Secretary Han: "It's related to the Liyue National Bank. If Ningguang, the developer, can't hold on to her cash flow and goes bankrupt, our bank will have to print money to buy up her properties to stabilize the market, because her properties are essentially our issued currency. In this way, Ningguang will completely tie her properties to the people's money."

The carving master, swinging his pigtails, said, "I didn't understand."

Ningguang: "Have you heard of 'Too Big to Fail'? If I run out of money, the government has to inject capital into me. If the developers under my management go bankrupt, the government has to take over for me. Otherwise, I'll let the buildings go to waste. If they go to waste... then the people will riot! So don't even think about collecting taxes. Once the melons on the vine are ripe, they're not ready to be picked again."

Ningguang leisurely took a puff of his pipe.

Master Carver: "This is not fair! It's so unfair! She makes the lion's share of the profits, and we have to use our money to fill her holes!"

Secretary Han: "Well... there's nothing we can do about it."

Master Ke, with tears in his eyes, threw himself onto Secretary Han's shoulder: "Waaah, you're not allowed to play dumb! You're my man, you have to help me!"

Secretary Han patted the engraver's cat ears: "Don't worry, I'll definitely help you!"

Ningguang scoffed: "Then may I ask, Vice Minister Han, what do you plan to do?"

Secretary Han: "Collect taxes. Make Ningguang pay taxes! To prevent Ningguang from running away, I will first restrict the flow of capital and trap you in Liyue Harbor."

Ningguang: "It's alright. I'm the kind of person who loves to benefit the people."

Secretary Han: "I will also levy taxes on your properties, not just your Qunyu Pavilion, but also all the rental properties under your Ningguang Chamber of Commerce, such as Liuli Pavilion and Xinyue Pavilion... I will collect them all!"

Ningguang raised an eyebrow: "Aren't you afraid that I'll sell off assets and cause a collapse?"

Secretary Han: "Sell? I'll still tax you even if you sell! I'll require all properties to be registered with the General Affairs Department. We'll be able to find out exactly when anyone bought their house, its market value, and how much it has appreciated. We'll tax more for properties with higher appreciation rates and less for those with lower appreciation rates. As for your talk of a market crash, hehe."

Ningguang asked curiously, "You have a way?"

Secretary Han held up two fingers: "I have two ways to prevent the housing market from collapsing. First, implement purchase restrictions and sales restrictions to reduce transaction volume. Second, the Liyue National Bank will inject funds to bail out the assets you sell. In short, if you hold them, I'll collect your property tax; if you sell them, I'll collect your income tax."

The engraver whispered in Secretary Han's ear, "Mr. Han, it's tall and hard!"