Chapter 1289: Moving Forward (One Hundred and Seventy-Nine) Parliament Building

On December 15th, Jicheng, covered by heavy snow, woke up earlier. As soon as the bell of the fifth watch rang, the lights of the Jicheng Guild Hall in each county were lit at almost the same time. The quiet guild hall became lively in an instant. The councillors who went to bed early yesterday dressed neatly and came to the first floor lobby in high spirits. There, a rich breakfast had been prepared for them. After eating this meal, they would set off for the Great Council.

The annual Great Council is the time for various places to confront each other, especially those economically underdeveloped and more remote states and counties, which are even more combative. The pie given by the central court every year is so big. Although it grows every year, the growth is also limited. Who doesn't want to get a little more from this pie? Even a county as rich as Jishi County is thinking about getting a bigger share. No one would mind having too much money, right? With more money, they can naturally do more for the local people, so that the people will be more grateful for the hard work of these councillors. The people of Jishi County have long solved the problem of food and clothing. Now the whole county is working hard to move towards a well-off society. The county chiefs and councilors are thinking about providing more benefits to the people. For example, Fang Shu took the lead in distributing allowances to the elderly over 60 years old in Yingshui. Such a big event made Jishi County regretful. Why didn't they think of such a big reputation? Even if they catch up now, they are still second!

The first place will get a prize, and the second place can only drink soup.

However, the first two days should be more relaxed. According to the agenda of previous years, the first day is the government's annual work report for the councilors to review, and then the highest officials of various departments will summarize the achievements and mistakes of the year. From the second day, the budgets submitted by various places will be reviewed. But this year, an agenda has been added. All the councilors will vote to elect the next prime minister. This is the first time in the history of the world. For these councilors. The vote in their hands may determine who the next councilor will be. How can they not be excited?

At dawn, everyone had eaten and drunk enough. The carriage outside the door had been prepared. Everyone went out one by one, got on the carriage, and went straight to the place where the Great Council was located.

The brand-new parliament building was just completed this year. Compared with the previous Great Council meeting hall, it was completely independent from the previous government office group. It was far away from the palace, but compared with Gao Yuan's palace, this parliament building was much taller.

The new parliament building, which adopted the latest reinforced concrete structure, was five stories high. The nearly 20-meter-high building stood out like a crane among chickens. Standing on the top of the building, you can completely overlook the entire Jicheng. When it was first built, Xun Xiu, the old minister of the Ministry of Rites, strongly opposed it. Xun Xiu believed that in Jicheng, there could not be any building higher than the main hall of the Great Han Palace, but this proposal was rejected by Gao Yuan without giving face, which made Xun Xiu so angry that he fell ill. Afterwards, Gao Yuan asked about his well-being. Even the queen came to visit in person, but the building was still growing taller day by day, and finally appeared in front of the people of Jicheng in a show of force.

On the roof, the four one-meter-sized words "Parliament Building" were extremely conspicuous.

From a long distance, you can see this building and the big words on it at a glance. It has become a landmark building in Jicheng. In front of the building. There is a huge square. At this time, many carriages have been parked there. The soldiers of the Young Guards are directing the coachmen to park these carriages one by one to the designated locations.

In winter, the sun rises late, and the sky is still very dark at this time, but in front of the parliament building, there are two beams of light shining directly from the ground, illuminating the four words "Parliament Building" in every detail. This strange scene immediately attracted all the members who came to the meeting, and they all rushed to the light source where the two beams of light were emitted. They were two box-like things installed in the flower bed. There were railings in front of the flower bed, and guards stood on both sides, but they could only be viewed from a distance and could not be played with.

The railing was crowded with curious councillors. When they came closer, they could see more clearly. There was only a candle as thick as a child's arm in the box, but how come the light, which should have been very weak, became so radiant when it came out of the box?

"What invention is this?" one of the councillors asked loudly.

In the Han Dynasty, there are strange inventions every day, and people become rich because of their inventions every day. Now seeing this strange scene, the Han people will not think that this is another manifestation of the gods or demons, but will naturally think that this is another strange invention.

Ordinary Han people are like this, not to mention these knowledgeable councillors.

"This is just developed by Mingbo Company." Chen Fang whispered to a councillor next to him. As people from Jishi City, they have a natural sensitivity to new technologies and have already inquired about it clearly. "You all know the glass they produce, right?"

"Of course I know. I just installed it at home. It's really good in the winter. I can enjoy the snow scenery while sitting in the house. I don't have to shrink my hands and feet because of the cold like before. But it's really expensive." Someone next to him said, shaking his head.

"Any good thing that comes out is naturally expensive." Chen Fang said with a smile: "Like Procter & Gamble, what price did a piece of soap cost three years ago? But now, there are more people doing it, and its price Naturally, it came down. I heard that this thing is made of this kind of glass and can amplify the weak light. "

"This thing is transparent, how can it do such tricks?"

Chen Fangchi laughed, "If everyone knows about it, how can others get rich? There is of course special technology here, but we don't know about it."

"Congressman Chen, since you know so much, you must have been thinking about taking a share in him or simply acquiring him, right? If such a good thing happens, don't forget to help your brother." Someone squeezed over from behind, Chen Fang Turning around, he recognized a councilman from Tianhe County. Like himself, this man was also a wealthy workshop owner.

"Of course I asked about it, but I advise you, brother, not to make this idea, right?" Chen Fang chuckled, "The boss of Mingbo Company is called Wang Kang."

"Wang Kang, I've never heard of it!" the businessman shook his head.

Chen Fang laughed again: "Brother, let's go and find out who this Wang Kang is before thinking about this matter, okay?" After saying this, he clasped his hands behind his back and swayed. Then he left.

"Speaker, who is this Wang Kang?" behind him, a Jishi County councilor asked in a low voice.

"Wang Kang used to be the king's personal soldier." Chen Fang lowered his voice and said, "So if you think about it carefully, it is self-evident what the background of Mingbo Company is. At first, I also thought about buying this Mingbo Company. , but as soon as they found out about Wang Kang’s background, they immediately stopped.”

"It turns out it's the king's company." The congressman stuck out his tongue. "It seems that our king is really driven by Minister Wang. He actually let his soldiers come out to do business and dare not use his name."

Chen Fang laughed heartily. The story of the king pursuing and beating up Wang Wuyi because he failed to ask for salary was spread all over the world because of the Han Weekly. After everyone read it, they laughed wildly and had to sigh. You really are a rare person in a thousand years. If you look at the history books, when will you see the majestic leader of a country asking for salary from his subordinates? This king is not just for nothing, but the founder of the most powerful kingdom in the world!

The bell rang, and the door of the parliament building slowly opened amidst the sound of the bell. Hundreds of members climbed up the steps and filed into the parliament building. As the door creaked shut, the inside and outside were isolated. Armed Young Guards soldiers stood solemnly in front of the gate.

The hall on the first floor is extremely high. If you look up, you can see that it is more than five meters. The layout of the hall is also very unique. The surroundings are high and the middle is low. Rows of desks and chairs are neatly arranged. Each one is The areas were all marked, and each chair had a name on it. It was obvious that a lot of effort had been put into it. When everyone saw the inside, they all understood it with just a glance. Everyone searched for their own area and hit it. He sat down in his own chair.

In the lower middle, there is only a table, but no chairs. It is prepared for people who make government reports or propose motions. All members can look down at the speaker in the middle. This arrangement inexplicably gave these congressmen more confidence.

They have long developed the habit of criticizing and pointing out the mistakes of government work in recent years. Some people have even done their homework and are ready to raise questions on the spot after speaking in various departments. Last year, officials from several departments were arrested The questions were so sweaty that they even caused a major earthquake in the Ministry of Industry. One minister lost his head, and another minister was also implicated. He worked hard until this year and was restored to his original position. He was supposed to take over the position of Minister of the Ministry of Industry. , up to now, Wu Kai is still in charge of political affairs.

On one side of the building, a passage connected a row of small rooms. Inside, Jiang Jiaquan was sitting upright in a brand-new official uniform. This was the last time he summarized the gains and losses of the government work in the past year in front of hundreds of congressmen. After delivering this government work report, he will step down as chief minister and return to the ordinary people from his position below one person and above ten thousand people. In front of him, Gao Yuan also had a solemn expression.

The door was gently opened, and Kou Shuguang walked in, "Your Majesty, the Chief Assistant, are already in place outside."

Gao Yuan stood up, walked to Jiang Jiaquan, and gently helped Jiang Jiaquan up, "Sir, let's go!" (To be continued...)