After breaking up with my girlfriend, I became a Great Sage of the Demon Clan.

"I can't receive it."

Zhou Yan: "..."

Indeed, judging from Dou Xingjun's appearance as a scourge destined to linger for millennia, he doesn't seem like an easy person to deal with.

Zhou Yan drove to the front of the Daxing Hotel. The hotel's security personnel greeted him familiarly. Zhou Yan handed the car over to the security personnel, and he and Xiao Yanjun got out of the car and walked into the Daxing Hotel together.

Late at night, the lobby on the first floor of the Daxing Hotel was even more lively, with all sorts of well-dressed people walking around, many of whom were faces that Zhou Yan had seen on television and on the computer.

Whenever Zhou Yan met these familiar faces, he would receive polite smiles. Zhou Yan estimated that even if he went up to talk to these people, they would probably communicate with him in a friendly manner.

The reason is that I appeared at the Daxing Hotel.

Zhou Yan led Xiao Yanjun into the elevator. After Zhou Yan and Xiao Yanjun, a middle-aged man in his thirties led a petite and cute little girl into the elevator.

Zhou Yan assumed the middle-aged man was the little girl's parent, but when the middle-aged man saw the little Yan Jun next to Zhou Yan, wearing hot pants and black stockings with delicate features, his eyes widened, and then he took out a business card for Zhou Yan.

"Sir, I'd like to be friends with you. Would you be interested?"

Zhou Yan took the business card, which read "Xu Hai'an, Vice Minister of the Pure Love Club".

Zhou Yan had no idea what this "Club of Pure Love" was, but Bai Ze's omniscience ability simply unfurled a banner.

Pure Love Club: The largest children's club in Zhongzhou City.

Zhou Yan: "..."

Zhou Yan turned his head and met the gaze of the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man looked at Zhou Yan, then at the little Yama beside Zhou Yan, and then said meaningfully.

"Young man, you can go out and ask around for my name. I'll be waiting for your reply."

"Ding dong..."

The elevator doors opened, and Xu Hai'an and the young girl beside him stepped out.

Zhou Yan watched with a complicated expression as Xu Hai'an placed his hand on a part of the little girl's body that no one should touch.

The elevator doors slowly closed, obscuring the two of them.

The elevator started rising again.

"Little Yama, who's next to Zhou Yan, is all smiles."

"Doesn't it feel disgusting?"

Zhou Yan hummed in agreement.

This isn't just one person committing a crime; it's an entire club.

Although Zhou Yan knew that rich people had all sorts of wild ways, including young models, celebrities, and schoolgirls, and that various newspapers and media outlets had reported on this countless times, he still felt a bit physically uncomfortable when he actually encountered them.

Little Yama shrugged.

"Okay, I'll deal with this organization later."

"Ding dong."

The elevator doors opened, and they arrived at the floor where Zhou Yan's presidential suite was located. Zhou Yan led Xiao Yanjun to his presidential suite and opened the door.

Little Yama stretched and went to the living room of the presidential suite, where he lay down on a sofa.

"Alright, little one."

Little Yama took off his shoes and put his two little black-stockinged feet on the sofa.

"I'm hungry. Order me some braised oxtail, mutton head in a casserole, and stir-fried tripe with coriander, mmm..."

Little Yama tapped her chin.

"Another serving of braised gluten and a serving of noodles with soybean paste, please."

Zhou Yan walked to another sofa cabinet, picked up the closed-circuit phone, and started ordering food for Xiao Yanjun.

Little Yama then took out his phone, and Wenquxing sent him several messages on the social media platform.

Wenquxing: It seems that the tax collection is not going smoothly.

Wenquxing: Xuanwu has now gone to talk to the president and vice president.

……

Zhongzhou City, the Black Palace, the political power center of the Eastern Xia United States.

Xuanwu arrived at the Black Palace in a convertible and went straight to the president's office after getting out of the car.

Within seconds, Xuanwu arrived in front of the presidential office and, without asking any questions, simply pushed open the door.

There were only five people in the president's office.

The Vice President, the President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Minister of Defense, and the Minister of Finance—these people were just chatting happily, but as soon as Xuanwu opened the door, they immediately put on a stern face and fell silent.

Xuanwu entered the office, closed the door behind him, walked to the president's desk, and casually found a chair to sit down.

All the other high-ranking officials of the Eastern Xia United States looked at the president.

The president of the Eastern Xia United States was a 58-year-old man who was the leader of the Democratic Party of the Eastern Xia United States. He had long held considerable power within the party and was almost on par with any of the three City God members of the Upper House. Therefore, he dared to speak in front of Xuanwu.

“Mr. Ankang, your tax collection plan seems to have encountered a great backlash.”

Xuanwu said coldly.

"Didn't the House of Commons pass my tax increase plan?"

The vice president reluctantly stated.

"Many members of the House of Lords feel that abolishing tax exemptions and implementing a globally unified tax system is very inappropriate, as it would seriously damage our national prestige."

Besides the Eastern Xia Federation, there are many small countries. In order to attract investment, these small countries offer tax breaks to large foreign companies. Many of the Eastern Xia Federation's big tycoons set up companies in these small countries to avoid the huge taxes levied by the Eastern Xia Federation.

In the past, this method of tax evasion by exploiting different national policies was something that even the world's top tax authorities in the Eastern Xia Federation could not handle. But now, in order to increase the national treasury revenue, Xuanwu has begun to discuss a global unified tax system with the three City Gods and some members of parliament who support him, and has already passed the approval of the House of Representatives.

The content of this bill is very simple: no matter which country you are in, as long as the main body of the company is still in the Eastern Xia United States and the company is registered in the Eastern Xia United States, then taxes must be paid in accordance with the tax laws of the Eastern Xia United States.

This effectively cuts off one of the legal means of tax avoidance.

This would not only significantly increase national treasury revenue, but also force industrial jobs to return to the Eastern Xia United States.

Just like the Great Meng of yesteryear, the federal government's influence has been declining year by year because the country is unable to collect taxes, the national treasury is empty, and now the national debt issued by the country is 1.1 times the annual GDP of the Eastern Xia United States.

Now Xuanwu is thinking about how to extort money from capitalists and force them to hand over their money.

As long as the national treasury has money, everything will be easier.

However, as soon as the tax plan was passed by the House of Commons, the members of the House of Lords who were supporting their respective financial backers began to stir. Of course, Xuanwu was not one of those presidents who changed every four years, so the other members of the House of Lords did not dare to confront Xuanwu face to face and could only stick together.

The Minister of National Defense advised.

“Mr. Ankang, what era are we living in? The free market is the main theme. If we force domestic capital into shackles, it may damage the free market.”

The Minister of Economic Affairs nodded in agreement.

"If taxes increase, capitalists will earn less and even lose money. In the end, the costs will still be passed down to the lower classes. In other words, the taxes we receive will eventually pass from the capitalists to the lower classes. Mr. Ankang, what you are doing may seem like you are increasing the country's revenue, but in reality, it will force people to starve. Won't the country still be in a difficult situation then?"

The vice president also joined the conversation.

"You eat one bite at a time, and you walk one step at a time, Mr. Wu. There's no need to rush things. Why don't we discuss this matter slowly?"

The Speaker of the House of Commons nodded repeatedly.

“I have actually discussed this with several capitalists in China. They can accept a certain amount of tax, but it would be too much to apply the domestic standards directly.”

Xuanwu swept his gaze over the group of people with disdain.

What's this talk of taking it slow? The biggest downside of these democratic lawmakers is that they can't get anything done, and their biggest advantage is also that they can't get anything done.

Now that Xuanwu wants to increase national tax revenue, this group immediately resorted to their traditional skill: delaying.

and so……

Xuanwu suddenly burst into laughter.

Amid the laughter, the other high-ranking political figures who were preparing to advise Xuanwu against such radical tax reforms or to stall for time exchanged bewildered glances.

The laughter gradually subsided.

Xuanwu laughed.

"Alright, alright, my dear gentlemen, we're all on the same side. What business is it of ours whether those lowly people live or die?"

The president's heart skipped a beat.

Is Xuanwu about to start distributing the money?

If the tax reform goes through, the federal government will definitely receive a large sum of money every year. This money certainly won't all be used for people's livelihood; most of it will definitely go into the bank accounts of various members of Congress.

It's very simple logic: if you don't give me any benefits, why should I endorse you?

In the Eastern United States, the two major political parties are hostile to each other. Whenever one party proposes a policy or a bill, it will definitely try to feed the other party so that they can make money together. This way, the other party will not cause trouble and prevent your bill from passing.

So, how much benefit would one have to accept to endorse Xuanwu?

The president was somewhat troubled.

Xuanwu on the other side said with a grin.

"Alright, my gentlemen, let's not keep such a stern face and say such disgusting things. By the way, did you know? The Dongfu Theater recently had a new actress nicknamed Linjiangxian, and her rendition of 'The Butterfly Lovers' was met with thunderous applause."

"I also drove my convertible here today."

Xuanwu stared at the president.

"Mr. President, how about we hop in my convertible and go to the Dongfu Theater to see a play?"

president:"……"

Let's talk about tax reform instead.

Chapter Twenty-Five: The Capitol Building

The next morning.

Zhou Yan was woken up by the ringtone he had set for his phone.

The young man rubbed his head and went out to brush his teeth, wash his face, and change into a suit that Zhuque had prepared for Zhou Yan. After finishing everything, Zhou Yan walked out of his bedroom.

In the living room, Xiao Yanjun, who had been watching TV all night, sat cross-legged, holding Su Xiaowan and rubbing her head, his eyes fixed on the morning news channel of Zhongzhou TV.

The channel host, a dignified and elegant woman, smiled.

"...The National Tax Reform Consultation Meeting convened at 11:00 AM today in the House of Commons, and the Federal Government invited..."

Zhou Yan walked to the suite door, opened it, and went downstairs to the buffet restaurant on the second floor.

Zhuque sat in the corner with a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger). Zhou Yan brought a bowl of beef noodles and sat down in front of Zhuque. Zhuque dipped the roujiamo in the spicy soup and asked a question.

What did you hear that day?

Zhou Yan smiled wryly.

“I heard Xuanwu say that he wanted to invite the President to ride in a convertible to the Dongfu Theater to watch a play.”

This was something Little Yama mentioned to Zhou Yan during dinner last night.

At that time, Zhou Yan asked if there was a psychopathic gunman next to the Dongfu Theater who had all the buffs of being gay, transgender, transvestite, environmentalist, animal rights activist, and vegetarian.

Zhuque paused, the roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) she had placed in front of her mouth.

Zhuque shook her head.

"That's outrageous... Is there any more?"

Zhou Yan shook his head.

“There are some strange things around Xuanwu that have been interfering with my eavesdropping, so I can't hear much.”

This isn't surprising, considering that the child has only been awakened for a month. Asking him to eavesdrop on a true god is indeed a bit difficult.

Zhuque didn't ask any more questions, and just lowered her head to eat her roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) and hulatang (spicy soup).

After finishing their meal, Zhuque led Zhou Yan downstairs and out of the Daxing Hotel.

Outside the Daxing Hotel, a row of men in black were waiting. After Zhuque passed by, the men in black came up and led Zhou Yan and Zhuque into a military vehicle with bulletproof windows.

After Zhou Yan and Zhu Que got in, three identical cars flanked them on the front and back, driving all the way to Guangming Road, where the Capitol Building was located.