After Sedorum, others also chimed in.
"In this case, after obtaining the consent of Haka and Hasdruba, you, Lysias, will submit the proposal to add a rotating chairman to the Senate for discussion and approval."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
At this time, Alexis spoke up and asked: "Your Majesty, your newly divided area is not quite the same as the source area of each legion. Will this affect the citizens' participation in military training and expedition? Do you need it? Adjust the source of troops for each legion?"
"I don't think it's necessary." Davos said simply: "The army is the army, the region is the region, the two sides do not interfere with each other, and they must cooperate with each other, especially when there is a war, each town and region must vigorously Cooperating with the Legionnaires on expeditions and dealing with the aftermath, this is the stipulation of the Dionysian Law, and I don’t think officials of any level dare to obstruct or violate it!”
After answering Alexis' question, no one asked another question for a while, so Davos continued: "Let me talk about some adjustments to the official level of the kingdom after the division of regions and the addition of the post of regional chief executive."
Everyone pricked up their ears again.
"The rotating chairman is still the highest-ranking official of the kingdom, followed by ministers of various departments. The rank of regional administrators is the same, but they must be elected by the Senate; the rank of city administrators is the same as that of the junior officials of various departments. The ranks of middle-level officials will no longer be selected by the Senate, but will be directly decided by the Kingdom Executive Council…”
"Your Majesty's decision is too correct!" Hormone praised loudly: "There are now more than 100 large and small towns in the kingdom, and almost every 3 or 4 days, a city administrator will take office, and the Senate is busy choosing a successor every day. Where's the spare time for other important things!"
Others also felt this, and the veteran members of the Senate such as Lysias and Sedorum thought more: Since the Kingdom Executive Council has been held frequently, many internal affairs of the kingdom have been solved here, and even many decrees It is also discussed here first, and after a resolution is formed, it is passed at the Senate meeting. Since the five rotating chairmen and ministers of various departments are important members of the Senate, if they have reached an agreement, the proposal is easy to pass. In this way, the affairs of the Senate have been reduced a lot. The election of the chief executives of various towns has also been cancelled, and the role of the Senate has been greatly weakened!
Lysias looked at Davos, who was thinking about what to say, and thought a lot for a while.
"Next is the Demo chief executive of each town, and then the village chief... This constitutes the most basic level 5 administrative officials in the kingdom, and the levels of officials in other departments are adjusted accordingly according to this standard. Oh, right! The city administrator of each district seat should be half a level higher than the ordinary city administrator... Also, the authority of the district administrator is not exactly the same as that of the wartime governor we have appointed before, he has the executive power to manage the whole region , but has no right to use the army, and no right to make local ordinances, but although he does not appoint the governors of the cities within the region, he can recommend the governors of Gedmo..."
The crowd pondered every word Davos said, because it was likely to be closely related to their future. On the contrary, Archibides couldn't help but interject: "Your Majesty, after the kingdom's territory is divided into regions, and the chief executive of each region is appointed, should other officials be appointed? It’s not too low, it’s going to be a big treasury outlay.”
"This is unavoidable." Davos comforted him: "The bigger the kingdom is, the more problems and complex difficulties it will encounter. This requires our governance to be more precise and efficient. Of course, to We can discuss which officials should be equipped.
For example, in the past, the population of each town was small, and one or two clinics and hospitals could solve the disease problems of the people. Therefore, most towns did not have officials from the Ministry of Health. In the case of illness and treatment, it is necessary to set up medical officials to ensure the health of the people in the area.
Another example is whether it is necessary for officials of the construction department to set up in the region, because each subordinate town has its own construction personnel, when the entire region needs to build large public buildings, the local administrator can completely concentrate the construction personnel of the subordinate towns, Planning and building…”
Davos and the ministers discussed the issue of the regional chief until dusk, and they basically came up with a clear and clear plan.
After everyone left, Davos stared at the big map and thought for a while before asking Henepolis to put the map back.
When Henipolis returned to the palace hall, Davos said to him: "Heney, don't rush home first, go visit Mersis with me."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Under the escort of the guards, Davos left the palace. The pedestrians he met along the way stopped to say hello to the king, and Davos responded with a smile.
Mersis's mansion is not too far from the palace, just at the northern foot of the hill of the gods. Compared with the mansions of other important officials and elders, its appearance is very splendid and conspicuous.
A tribune once reported him, claiming that he lived a luxurious life and suspected corruption, which caused a great disturbance for a while.
The Ministry of Supervision also specially sent officials to investigate, and found that not only did Mersis not embezzle the money from the national treasury, but during the Western Mediterranean War, when the national treasury was at its most tense, he also used the money from his own business to buy a batch of military supplies. , delivered to the front line.
After the news was announced, not only the people were in an uproar, but even the officials were surprised, which greatly changed the impression of this miser of the kingdom.
But what I didn't expect was that Mersis began to fall ill a year after the war ended. After many active treatments, the condition repeated for more than two years. He finally fell ill at the beginning of this year and was unable to manage. Des succeeded him and took over the finance department.
When Davos walked to the living room, Mersis had already come out with the help of two slaves.
At this time, he was already overweight and fat. Although he was covered by a wide white robe, he could still see his swollen legs and bloodshot ankles when he walked around. , Seeing Davos, his spirit was lifted a little, he tried his best to squeeze out a smile, and said in a hoarse voice: "Your Majesty, you finally came to see me!"
"Good you Mersis, so forgetful! I just visited you once last month!" Davos scolded softly.
"It's too long to visit once a month... It's better to come every two or three days..." Mersis said sarcastically, urging the slave beside him: "Hurry up... Help me to His Majesty... Talking like this saves effort..."
Davos hurriedly discouraged: "If you are not well now, don't come out. Be careful of catching a cold! Let's go to your bedroom."
"Thank you Your Majesty for your concern..." After walking for such a long distance, Mersis also felt powerless and did not insist.
"Your Majesty!!" Mersis's wife and three concubines also came together and greeted respectfully.
After Davos returned the salute, he thanked them: "You have worked so hard during this time!"
"What's so hard... Crying at every turn... Annoying me so much that I can't drive them all out..." Mersis scolded.
"I see that you are recovering at home, but your temper has grown a lot!" Davers said in a scolding tone.
"I'm stuck at home every day... I can't scold my colleagues... I can only scold my family..." Mersis was very calm.
"You, you..." Davos shook his head again and again with such a rogue Mersis look.
In the bedroom, the servant carefully helped Mersis to lie down on the bed, and the big hardwood bed was squeaky under his weight.
At this time, Davos saw that Mersis's feet were red and black and shriveled, and at the same time, a strong sadness surged up in his heart, reminding him of Helps not long ago. Pessimistic estimates made when it comes to Mersis's condition.
After Mersis covered his body with a quilt, he drove out his wife and servants, leaving only Davos, Henepolis, and Martius in the house.
Then, Mersis asked: "Your Majesty, you came to visit me today... Wouldn't it be something important?"
Davos motioned Martius to close the door, and then said softly, "Tell you good news, but keep it a secret!"
Mersis saw Martius' movement, so he nodded solemnly.
"The kingdom is going to raise taxes on the people!" Davos said word by word.
"It's long overdue!" Mersis was refreshed, and immediately thought of keeping it secret, he lowered his voice and emphasized again: "It's long overdue for the kingdom to increase taxes!"
Davos smiled, then briefly explained the reasons for the tax increase, and then seriously asked: "How much tax do you think should be increased to solve this military spending problem, ease the country's finances, and at the same time allow the public Can it be tolerated?"
"Of course it's 10%!" Mersis replied without hesitation.
"Be serious!" Davos's tone became stern.
Mersis was stared at by Davos' majestic eyes, and he didn't dare to talk nonsense any more. He thought about it carefully, and then said with some reluctance: "I think... 5% may be more appropriate."
When it comes to money, Mersis becomes energetic, not only speaks more fluently, but also has quick thinking. He explained in detail why he chose this tax rate. The man who holds the financial power, Mersis analyzes every aspect of the kingdom in detail and collects all kinds of data at his fingertips.