afterglow

Chapter 232 Borrowing from the left and suppressing the right;
"Report, the thugs were all killed without exception, but the two insiders were not killed."

"What about the captive workers?"

"One person was killed by a stray bullet, and the other four suffered minor scratches, but there was no danger of their lives."

Hearing that the final outcome wasn't particularly bad, the big stone in the center of the police officer fell to the ground, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Four people in a car, eight people in a minivan, and twelve well-armed and well-prepared guys were all shot dead because they resisted to the end, but the insiders among the two broadcasting company employees chose to surrender.

The diphenylchloroarsine poison also caused some collateral damage to the kidnapped employees. Fortunately, the impact was slight, and timely treatment made it possible for them to recover in a few days.

To Zhou Changfeng's lament and regret, a corporal in the fourth row of the reconnaissance team was shot in the heart by a bullet in a close-range exchange of fire and died.

It can only be said that this is the cruelty of the era of hot weapons - even a well-trained elite fighter may still be shot to death by an ordinary person who has just learned how to shoot.

This would be almost impossible in the era of cold weapons. Even if a sergeant does not wear heavy armor like the Iron Buddha, but only wears ordinary armor or chain mail, ordinary people may leave a mark if they cut it with a knife. .

This incident finally came to an end. However, just as the capital was relieved, something strange happened again.

Having just finished a major case, this is undoubtedly the most psychologically exhausting and relaxing time for highly stressed people.

A wave of unrest, a wave of up again.

That night, the mansion of Li Guangyuan, a scholar of Huagaidian University and Minister of Finance, was raided——

At Haishi, a truck slammed into the courtyard wall regardless of the obstruction of the patrolmen.It was loaded with four large gasoline barrels and more than a dozen bags of ammonium nitrate fertilizer. It exploded after rushing into the yard and caused a huge fire.

The driver jumped out of the car halfway and was arrested on the spot by the patrol police who arrived.

According to the results of the interrogation, the attackers confessed that because the cabinet minister’s mansion was very tightly guarded, it was impossible to succeed with only a few people holding guns, so they thought of this method, and because the target would probably go back to the west wing to sleep at night, Therefore, I chose to carry out the raid at Haishi.

But they miscalculated the strength of the courtyard wall, so the truck barely crashed into the courtyard wall, the speed was greatly reduced, and it exploded in the courtyard before reaching the west wing.

And because the ammonium nitrate fertilizer is relatively insensitive and not easy to completely detonate, only a small part of the dozen or so bags of fertilizer really work.

As a result, Li Guangyuan was able to escape with only minor injuries.

He was not the only one who was also assassinated. Another Datong party member named Liang Yiqian was also raided and died unfortunately.

Naturally, the councilor's mansion was not as tight as the cabinet ministers, with only two or three guards. Four premeditated attackers quietly climbed over the wall and entered the courtyard, then rushed into the wing room and shot Liang Yiqian, who was about to go to bed.

After that, the four of them engaged in a fierce exchange of fire with the guards and the patrolling police who arrived. They fired hundreds of bullets at each other for a quarter of an hour, and were finally outnumbered and killed.

However, in the capital of the mighty Ming Empire, three highly targeted and monstrous incidents happened in just one day, and the impact was really extremely bad.

The world was in an uproar, and all countries were shocked.

The emperor asked the Ministry of Punishment to transfer the matter to the Foreign Anti-Affair Factory for investigation and handling, and immediately track down the accomplices.

In the morning, in the second room of Zhaoren Hall.

"...how do you deal with it in your opinion?"

"My son thinks that you must never forgive lightly, otherwise it will be regarded as connivance, and it will be messed up if others learn and behave in the future."

The emperor with a serious expression nodded slightly, "Indeed, the goal can be achieved at the cost of a few people, and this kind of evil spirit must not be encouraged."

"That's what my minister has decided." The Crown Prince clenched his fists, "We must be severely punished."

Such behavior can be said to be extremely bad, completely breaking the balance of normal political wrestling.

Using violent means to kill people who disagree with one another can remove political opponents, and second, attract people's attention and expand their influence.

The price is small, the effect is great, and if it is small, it will make a big difference. Once it spreads, Daming will be messed up.

In a sense, such an act can be likened to cheating while playing a game, seriously disrupting the balance of the game.Second, as far as the official is concerned, it is true that acquiescing to cheating players can increase the popularity of the game to a certain extent, but this is drinking poison to quench thirst. If severe sanctions are not imposed, the game will eventually become a chaotic hell where demons dance wildly.

The rulers can allow the existence of these right and extreme right factions, but it does not mean that they can tolerate such messes.

"Father, after the assassination a few years ago, there were many sympathizers in various state capitals across the country to collectively petition with blood, and even surrounded the execution ground. This time... I am afraid it will be exactly the same."

"So, how will you deal with it?" The emperor turned his head to look at the crown prince, and asked with great interest, "Tell me?"

The latter didn't hesitate much, so he replied directly: "At that time, you chose to stand on the sidelines and not deal with it. You wanted to test the influence of those people and others, but you suppressed them vigorously to weaken their actual strength. Now... Erchen I feel that the overall strategy has to be changed, and such radical thoughts should not be flooded, and it is best to maintain the current state of small existence.”

He paused, then murmured: "Severe suppression on the surface, if the people object, then use the power of other factions. The rest of the time the court remains silent and makes less noise."

The emperor said "hmm", "Then do it like this."

If there are right-wing demonstrations, besieged prisons or execution grounds, you may wish to use left-wing forces to fight against it-if you march, I will block your way, and if you have thousands of blood letters, I will also jointly petition.

In France at the same time, there are countless such cases, which are of great reference value.

The next day, the Ministry of Criminal Affairs issued a public note confirming that both the Endeavor Society and the Youth Yongyue Society were illegal factions, and demanded that all party members immediately cut off contact and surrender to the government.

At the same time, the Ministry of Punishment also issued an orderly official document - Zhafu, ordering the assailants arrested by the Shanghai government police and the employees in the capital to be handed over to the foreign factory.

Because October [-] is Jimao Day, the Shanghai Morning Post took the lead in using "Jimao's Disaster" to refer to this incident in its extra issue; later, other newspapers also adopted this name one after another.

Although it is understandable to be helpless in the face of such a vicious emergency for the first time, Yingtianfu Police and Commander Yi'an were criticized to the point of disapproval.

Not only the reprimand from the government office, but also the impeachment from the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the officials, as well as the criticism from public opinion, all kinds of pressure made many people burnt out.

Some people are happy and some are sad, and vice versa.

At least Zhou Changfeng has nothing to do with the responsibility for this matter, verbal and written criticism cannot fall on him, he only needs to write a report on the action at that time afterwards.

One day in late October, in order to finalize the regulations for the official wedding, he came to Xia's house again after more than half a year.

After three rounds of drinking and five flavors of food, although I didn't intend to talk about current affairs, Xia Bing and Zhou Changfeng had both directly participated in the handling of "Jimao's disaster", and they couldn't do without rambling when they got interested.

"Alas... It's a pity that the people who died because of this." Gao Linglu sighed.

"Lawless and extremely arrogant." Xia Bing, who has always been casual, rarely showed disgust. "Whether it is good or bad, it is unforgivable to flout the law and hurt innocent people like this."

Zhou Changfeng said half-jokingly: "So my son-in-law practiced the violent coercion of the law."

The three of you chatted happily with each other. Before it was the wedding, then the days after marriage, and then the future plans, and now they talked about current affairs.

Xia Xiaoshi, who was at the side of the Four Immortals' Table, felt extremely uncomfortable, as if she was out of place - when Mr. Zhou was not coming, she was very comfortable at home, but when he came, her parents' attention was all on him!
For a moment, she suddenly wondered if she was her own.

"... But then again, it is really unprecedented to hold a wedding in the auditorium of the Advisory Council. Although it is an honor, it seems a bit ostentatious." Xia Bing said, stroking his beard.

Although he does not object, this "high-profile" move is not in line with his temperament.

Xia Xiaoshi couldn't help being a little nervous when she heard the words. Naturally, she wanted to go the most. She was very excited when she learned that the wedding could be held in the auditorium of the Advisory Council.

That was an unprecedented honor, how glorious, romantic, and commemorative.

The so-called only women understand women, in fact, Zhu Lingjing has accurately grasped the little thoughts of young girls like Xia Xiaoshi - when they are happy, they will naturally tend to be more psychologically inclined to themselves, and they will say some good things.

Generally speaking, women's pillow style is very effective for men.

"It's okay, it's just a precedent." Zhou Changfeng looked sideways at Xia Xiaoshi, and said with a smile, "It's good that Xiaoshi likes it."

Xia Bing didn't say any more, just took a large wall calendar and flipped through it while thinking: "As far as the auspicious date is concerned, January 28 next year is better, Yihai Day. Dingsi time in the morning and Renxu time in the afternoon are both suitable for marriage. It's an auspicious time to marry, let's see when it is convenient for the Advisory Council."

The customs of holding weddings in the north and the south are not the same. In the south, it is usually held in the evening, followed by a dinner party; in the north, it is usually held in the morning, followed by a luncheon.

But since the location this time is unusual, a little out of habit is acceptable.

After leaving Xia's house, Zhou Changfeng went to the Advisory Council to inform the general matters and arrangements.

The Advisory Council is located in the northwest of the Forbidden City, facing the ancient West Eighteenth Street to the south, but it has been renamed Wanmin Avenue.

For those who are familiar with the hierarchical system of traditional Chinese architecture, it only takes one glance to feel the status of the Advisory Council. The sense of magnificence that comes can make people hold their breath subconsciously.

Unlike the Hall of Supreme Harmony, which had to be built smaller and smaller because of the difficulty of finding huge timbers, the pillars of the main hall of the Advisory Council are actually made of prefabricated reinforced concrete wrapped with timber, so the overall building can be quite large.

As the highest parliamentary body under the unicameral system, the Great Ming Advisory Council has quite a lot of power. Apart from the most basic and critical legislative power, it is also responsible for the approval of the national budget and the passage of temporary bills.

But in terms of legislative power, the monarch under the dual monarchy still plays an important role, and bills passed by the parliament still need the approval of the monarch to take effect.In addition to constitutional amendments, the Ming emperor could theoretically oppose the Advisory Council.

However, the Ming emperor did not have the power of "forced dissolution of parliament" possessed by the British monarch. Although Zhu Shiyan wanted to win it back then, he wisely and decisively gave up after encountering strict refusal.

Even though many proposals were considered at the beginning, the final members of the Advisory Council were divided into three categories: appointed, popularly elected, and special.The constituency is modeled on the administrative district of the chief minister. There are eight elected members from each province; 80 appointed members; and ten special members.

After the Constitution Amendment was passed in 33, according to the economic, demographic and geographical division lines, the number of elected members in the eastern provinces increased to ten, and the number of elected members in the western provinces decreased to six; the number of imperial and special members remained unchanged.

Special members must be highly respected non-politicians, such as literary masters, famous doctors, and great scientists.They are small in number and only play a symbolic role.

Appointed members are elected for a term of nine years and cannot be re-elected; democratically elected and special members are elected for a term of six years and may be re-elected.

Generally speaking, the current unicameral Ming Dynasty parliamentary system is characterized by high efficiency brought about by a simple structure, eliminating the need for a bicameral system to fight against each other, but there are corresponding disadvantages of power concentration; Policy continuity is better, but mostly conservative.

Due to the "Ji Mao's disaster" a few days ago, the guards of the Advisory Council were very strict, which can be called three steps, one post, five steps, one sentry.

Military police with loaded guns were patrolling all around, and two armored vehicles were also parked outside, with the muzzles of black machine guns pointing directly at the street.

While being searched, Zhou Changfeng asked the sergeant beside him, "Are you from the First Division of the Imperial Guard?"

"Yes, martial law is still in place these days, sorry." The sergeant searched the body very carefully, touching it from top to bottom.

The person who came to receive Zhou Changfeng was a person in charge of the Advisory Council. He was tall and fat, and looked quite friendly.

After the two exchanged simple greetings, they walked around to the side of the main hall while chatting.

"Has the financial issue for next year been discussed? It looks like the Advisory Council hasn't opened for a few days."

"Yeah, people's hearts are unstable recently, the martial law has not yet been lifted, and the budget meeting is still stuck... Alas, I'm afraid it will be delayed until the twelfth lunar month this year."

The Advisory Council holds two regular meetings in a year—the first is the legal discussion, from April [-]st to June [-]th, to discuss various legal amendments and additions; the second is the financial budget discussion, from September [-]st to November [-]rd On the [-]th, discuss the budget allocation for various affairs next year.

The Endeavor Society and the Youth Yongyue Society chose to do things in October also because of this consideration. They hope to use this as a way to put pressure on the military to tilt the budget more towards the military.

Entering from the side of the main hall of the Advisory Council, the first hall is the auditorium.

"This is the auditorium. We often hold banquets here, but this is the first time we hold a wedding, and everyone has no experience."

"It's okay, just arrange it in a random manner." Zhou Changfeng looked around the spacious and grand hall, very satisfied, "We consider that the date will be January 28 next year, can the afternoon be okay?"

"Before the New Year's Eve, it's very free. It doesn't matter all day."

(End of this chapter)