Chapter 298: Confrontation in the Legislative Court
Is the old emperor just trying to scare people for no reason?
Yang Ming rushed to the palace module and found the building where the old emperor was at the moment. He couldn't help but give him a thumbs up and said, "That's fun."
This hall is decorated in the style of a nightclub, a popular entertainment venue in the imperial star circle. It is equipped with dance floors, booths, and private rooms. Hot beauties can be seen dancing to the music everywhere.
When Yang Ming arrived, the old emperor was sitting at the bar, smiling as he watched the 'bartender' in front of him playing with the wine bottles.
There were several middle-aged men sitting on the left and right, seemingly saying something to the emperor, and the emperor nodded slightly.
It looked messy here, but the emperor's personal maids changed into waitress clothes and formed three or four security circles.
Yang Ming stood by the dance floor and waited for a while.
The eyes show that they are now very moist.
"Damn, the emperor of the empire can play like this for a hundred years."
Yang Ming felt a little angry when he thought about it.
"Mr. Ghost," the maid called softly, "Your Majesty, please come over."
"Well," Yang Ming retracted his gaze, slowly walked behind the old emperor, and bowed slightly, "Your Majesty, you are looking for me."
"Come," the old emperor called.
Yang Ming was somewhat unsure in his heart, but he still sat calmly beside the emperor, with the old emperor holding his shoulder with his hand.
The old emperor smiled and said, "Have you arranged the internal election of the Council of Elders tomorrow?"
"It has been arranged," Yang Ming said, "I will lead the special task force of the Public Security Bureau to wait outside. If the result is different from what you expected, we will revise it."
"Great," the old emperor said, picking up his wine glass and raising it to the side, "These are the ones. Remember their faces, don't make any mistakes tomorrow."
Yang Ming glanced around and memorized the faces of these young elders in the Council of Elders.
Yang Ming asked: "Your Majesty, wouldn't it be more convenient for you to give orders directly to the Council of Elders?"
"This is the rule of the game," the old emperor said with a smile, "You don't quite understand the role of the Council of Elders. It is the embodiment of the will of the aristocracy, and it also restricts me. I can give them orders, and they can also refuse my direct orders through the Imperial Aristocratic Code."
Yang Ming nodded slightly.
The old emperor sighed softly: "Do you think that the emperor can do whatever he wants? When the empire was first established, it was true that my ancestor Levi Sherman had all the power of life and death, but he made a decision in his old age to dismember the imperial power. He said that only in this way can this political system exist for a long time."
Yang Ming was not sure about the old emperor's attitude towards the founding emperor, so he did not praise him at this time. He could only say, "Maybe there is some truth in this."
"He was extremely wise, and because of his decision, the Sherman family dominated the galaxy for tens of thousands of years."
The old emperor sighed softly:
"I recently researched the thirteen ancestors in our family history who were called tyrants, and found that...their paths of action were similar to mine, intimidating nobles and interfering in the legislative seats of the Council of Elders.
“I don’t even need to think too much about what I should do next . Just reading the history books is enough to make a plan.
"Those thirteen ancestors all centralized power during their lifetime, but after their death, the aristocracy restored the ancient system again because the newly enthroned emperor did not have enough deterrent power, and they even manipulated the selection of the new emperor."
Yang Ming was a little confused about what the old emperor wanted to say.
Maybe he drank some wine and started to lament about life.
The old emperor changed the subject and said, "So, Hanton, don't worry about this country. I can do whatever I want. Everything will be corrected when I die. The system established by our ancestor Levi has a perfect error correction feedback mechanism. Let's go tomorrow and let those old men feel the power of the White Ghost."
"I see."
Yang Ming nodded, took the crystal glass given by the bartender, looked at the little bit of wine at the bottom of the glass, and couldn't help but curse in his heart that the person was stingy.
The old emperor did not talk much about politics and soon went to the dance floor to lounge around.
To be honest, the old emperor's dancing posture is no different from that of a baboon rubbing against a tree.
There were many beautiful girls trying to approach Yang Ming and chat with him, but Yang Ming always refused with a smile and did not talk to these emperor's private property.
The young elders were soon pulled into the dance floor by the girls, and the scene gradually began to develop in a direction that the TV station was not allowed to broadcast.
Just as Yang Ming was wondering whether he should go against his principle of being loyal to his partner, a personal maid who was in charge of delivering messages walked up to Yang Ming in high heels and whispered, "Aren't you going to accompany His Majesty to relax for a while?"
"No," Yang Ming smiled, "My girlfriend is still waiting for me in the dormitory."
"Girlfriend?" The maid smiled. "Given the current situation, your girlfriend can understand your work environment."
"It has nothing to do with whether she understands or not," Yang Ming asked, "Does His Majesty have any instructions?"
"No, I was just curious and came over to ask," the maid pointed to the sofa in the corner.
Yang Ming looked in the direction of her fingertips and saw two girls with delicate faces and good figures. They were wearing backless dresses. At the moment, their eyes were red and they looked a little dazed.
The maid said, "They are the gifts His Majesty has given you tonight. They are the granddaughter and niece of Prince Venos. They are of royal blood, and it is rare that one of them is still young and in love. If you want to gain His Majesty's complete trust, take them to the box next door. They will not resist."
Yang Ming: …
The maid smiled and said, "Your girlfriend should understand your difficulties, Mr. Ghost."
"Is this an order from His Majesty?"
"no."
"Forget it then," Yang Ming curled his lips slightly, "I have always kept my distance from noble girls, and I don't like girls who have had relationships with me. I will degenerate myself in the future."
The maid nodded in understanding, bowed slightly to Yang Ming, and then strolled away.
Yang Ming thought about it and got up and went to the dance floor.
Although it was a bit annoying to be taken advantage of by these girls, it was better than having a bad relationship with the old emperor.
It was already late at night when Yang Ming left the palace.
He saw the familiar elevator attendant again in the ascending elevator. After sitting down on the sofa, he raised his hand and waved to her.
The girl suddenly became a little nervous, fearing that Yang Ming, who was drunk, would do something out of line to her. Many of her colleagues had been molested by those noble lords, and some had even been taken back to the noble manors.
Although the empire hero in front of me is very handsome and has a great body, but, but... it's not impossible...
"Hello."
"Don't be nervous," Yang Ming smiled, "Give me your communicator."
The girl didn't understand what was going on, so she quickly handed over her communicator. In her heart, she began to fantasize about some domineering CEO plot like "This is my contact information."
Bang!
The communicator was crushed by Yang Ming, and the fragments flew into the self-priming trash can nearby.
Yang Ming took out two banknotes from his sleeves, threw them into the girl's hands, and said calmly: "Don't take pictures of things near the palace in the future, go back and stand."
The girl's body trembled slightly, her pretty face pale, she nodded quickly, turned around and walked back to the elevator door, her breathing a little uneven.
…
The Elders' Council building complex is located in the center-east of the underground first floor of the Imperial Star, occupying the entire module area.
There are three main buildings here - the Aristocratic Assembly Center similar to the ancient Roman Colosseum on Earth, the Legislative Court shaped like an ancient temple, and the Elders' Privy Council where the elders hold daily meetings.
All departments that maintain the normal operation of the empire , including national defense, diplomacy, education, industry, information, justice, finance, civil affairs, resources, etc., are directly connected with the Privy Council, and major matters are reported to His Majesty the Emperor by the Council of Elders.
The Council of Elders is in charge of government affairs, and the Imperial Army controls military power. Both report directly to the emperor and also restrain each other.
In this case, the emperor did have plenty of time for entertainment.
Emperor Star time, ten o'clock in the morning.
In front of the huge stone pillars of the Legislative Council, the elders who were attending today's internal election meeting, as well as the nobles who came to listen, were slowly walking through the security gate.
A row of hovercraft police cars appeared at the edge of the square in front of the court. The doors were pushed open, and hundreds of police uniformed members of the special task force on the murder of the prince rushed quickly toward the Legislative Yuan.
Yang Ming was the last one to get off the car. He raised his hand to straighten his collar and glanced around the area.
As expected, a group of guards appeared in front of the Legislative Yuan and stopped the task force.
Just as Yang Ming was about to reach the door, a middle-aged woman wearing a loose white robe but still showing her wealthy mind, came quickly in high heels.
"Viscount Hanton!"
"Hmm? We know each other?"
"The Great Elder wants to talk to you," the woman said softly, "He's right next to us. I'll take a few minutes of your time."
Yang Ming thought about it for a moment and nodded in agreement.
He signaled the task force members to wait outside, followed the woman and walked sideways for about a hundred meters, then entered the Legislative Yuan building through a small door on the side.
The woman's statement that she only delayed him for a few minutes was obviously a lie.
It took them nearly ten minutes to reach the Great Elder's Lounge, turning left and right, going up and down the elevator!
The woman knocked gently on the door. After receiving a response, she pushed the stone door, which had an unknown number of years of history, open a crack and said softly, "Please come in."
"Yes, thank you."
Yang Ming pushed the door open and took a look at the interior layout. Although he could see at a glance that there were many secret doors here and that there were higher bioenergy reactions behind those secret doors, Yang Ming didn't care much and stepped inside.
The stone door was closed by the guards outside.
The Great Elder was sitting on the sofa, smoking a cigarette, while a woman was kneeling beside him, massaging his calves to stretch his muscles and promote blood circulation.
"Lord Hanton, sit down."
"No need for that," Yang Ming glanced at the hourglass clock hanging on the wall, "The election will start soon. What does the Great Elder want to talk to me about? It's better to say it simply and clearly."
The elder sucked on something similar to a hookah, and did not even look at Yang Ming, but just said: "The Elders' Council has been very kind to you, Hanton."
"Of course, I am still a member of the Super Reformer Organization."
"Do you know what you are doing?" the elder asked with a frown.
Yang Ming did not answer.
The great elder said slowly, "The giant dragon with great power has been bound in the cave, so that this land can enjoy peace. Before the land is threatened, any act of awakening the giant dragon or untying it is a betrayal of the countless lives on the land."
Yang Ming smiled and said, "Great Elder, could you please not use metaphors?"
The Great Elder was almost choked by the smoke and looked up and glared at Yang Ming.
"Hanton, you know exactly what you are doing now and how harmful it is."
"Does the harm mean that the interests of the Council of Elders are damaged, or that the freedom of the great nobles is restricted?"
Yang Ming said calmly with a smile:
“I actually know that today’s operation will definitely not be smooth, and I can roughly guess that the Council of Elders is preparing to start a counterattack.
“But Great Elder, I have no problem with the Council of Elders itself. I am only following the orders of His Majesty to thoroughly investigate the murder of Prince Venos.
"I can warn you that the murderer may be hiding in this building right now."
The Great Elder's gaze was somewhat intimidating.
Yang Ming said goodbye with a smile and turned to leave.
"Viscount Hanton," the Great Elder spoke again, "If you insist on believing this, I can also tell you that the murderer is not in this building."
"Thank you for the reminder, Great Elder."
Yang Ming turned around, saluted, and then walked away.
It was almost as if Yang Ming had just left.
One of the guards at the door raised his hand and rubbed his neck, and the chip installed under the skin behind his ear flashed slightly;
In the corner of the room, the beautiful woman who brought Yang Ming over crossed her arms and gently touched her elbows.
Next to the great elder's lounge was the venue for today's internal election, and Yang Ming was too lazy to make a big circle.
He walked straight into the venue, and in front of a group of old men and women, he walked from the rostrum to the audience seats, sat in the last row, crossed his legs, and lowered his head to browse the Emperor Star message.
The members of the task force were still blocked outside the door, waiting for Yang Ming's order to rush in and arrest people.
The venue was quickly filled, and Yang Ming soon discovered something unusual.
Last night in the palace, there seemed to be one missing young elder who was received by the old emperor in a nightclub style. There were a total of twelve seats for candidates, and eleven were sitting there at this time.
An honorary earl named 'Ent' was late.
At 10:30 a.m., Emperor Star time, the entrances and exits of the venue were closed, the audience was asked to remain solemn, and the boring voting ceremony officially began under the chairmanship of the Great Elder.
The Great Elder’s expression was very calm;
The bad premonition in Yang Ming's heart became stronger and stronger.
Yang Ming used his own network access terminal to issue a full alert order to the surface security station, and shrill sirens rang out on the streets of major cities on the surface.
What does the Senate want to do?
As time passed, the election progressed smoothly and soon entered the vote counting stage.
When the votes for the first candidate chosen by the emperor appeared, the last trace of smile on Yang Ming's face quietly faded away, and the young elder whose name was called also looked stunned.
Eighteen votes, less than one twentieth of the total votes.
The circular venue fell into a deathly silence, and the noble elders remained silent in their respective seats.
The votes of the twelve people were released one after another, and the three elders originally selected by the Council of Elders won with an absolute advantage and officially entered the Legislative Chamber.
The corners of Yang Ming's mouth twitched slightly. He slowly stood up, picked up the communicator, and whispered:
"Each team."
Outside the Legislative Yuan, hundreds of special task force police officers immediately perked up.
Thousands of security officers who came to support from the rear were now nervously holding their laser guns.
In the Legislative Court.
Buzz, buzz!
Yang Ming's communicator suddenly vibrated continuously.
As soon as Yang Ming answered the call, he heard an old police officer shouting:
"Another case! The murder method is exactly the same as the murder of Prince Venos. More than a dozen guards were drugged and the victim was found dead in his bedroom. The makeup and clothes of the victim were the same as Prince Venos! She was also wearing a skirt! That gang is still committing crimes!"
Yang Ming's heart skipped a beat and he immediately asked, "Who is the deceased?"
"Count Ent, elder of the Elders' Council!"
Yang Ming raised his head and looked towards the center of the meeting room. The Great Elder was looking at him with a smile on his face.
This is the Elders’ counterattack.
"Viscount Hanton," an elder asked in a gentle voice, his voice clearly transmitted to every corner of the Legislative Chamber through the loudspeaker, "You suddenly stood up. Do you object to the current election results?"
Yang Ming was silent.
"Every noble can express his or her opinions in the Council of Elders. This is the Court of Free Speech open to the nobles of the empire."
Several elders smiled gently.
"Ah, I have no objection, it's just that my butt is itchy, so I stand up and stretch it."
Yang Ming closed the communicator.
The elders' eyes showed a little more contempt.
Yang Ming calmly adjusted the intercom channel, and his voice spread throughout the Legislative Chamber through the fixed-point loudspeaker equipment:
"Each team will enter the Legislative Yuan and take away the suspects they have identified. If anyone obstructs the investigation, they will also be arrested and detained for a few days for obstructing the investigation."
After saying that, Yang Ming took out the Emperor Star Badge from his pocket and put it on his chest.
There was a dense sound of footsteps from behind, and young people in police uniforms rushed into the Legislative Chamber and headed straight for the three elders who had just been successfully elected.
The faces of the elders in the core circle turned green with anger.
