When she walked into this study room covered with a dark blue velvet carpet, Victoria had the feeling that things were changing and things were changing.
The first time she walked here was with her father. Under the leadership of the former Duke of the North, she met Francis II, who was still in his prime, and Welsh Moen in his youth. At that time, she was still a young girl with a sliver of innocence, and the country was running smoothly and dullly as it had been for hundreds of years, as if it would never change.
The last time she came here was on the eve of departure for the giant log crossing. Sitting behind the desk was Welsh Moen who had returned to Silver Castle. The kingdom was splitting, and a terrible crisis that no one thought of was brewing in the Holy Spirit Plain .
Now, she has experienced a near-death situation, and is facing a turning point in the fate of this country. The owner here has become the Duke who has been resurrected from the dead. She has a faint feeling, as if history is gradually focusing on this room, and I... am experiencing all of this.
"Sit down, just do whatever you want," Gawain said in an amiable tone as he stood by the desk, watched the two Dukes of the Protectorate enter the room, and watched the attendants close the door and leave, "We want to talk about the future of this country." question."
"Yes... the Duke," Baldwin nodded, and found a seat for himself to sit down. He still addressed Gawain as "Duke", because Gawain has neither been crowned nor finalized and announced the framework for the future of the country. For the time being, he can only continue to refer to him as Duke.
"Wait a minute, there is another participant." Gawain pressed his right hand imaginarily to let the two guardian dukes wait a while, and his eyes fell on the magic net terminal that had just been placed on the desk. "She is establishing a connection ... The magic net here is not very stable, and it is being debugged."
At the same time, the two guardian dukes turned their eyes to the shimmering magical machine with a triangular metal base and a crystal core. It was not the first time Victoria had seen a magic net terminal, but Duke Baldwin had never seen it before. The Duke of the Western Territory kept his eyes on it, and did not hide his curiosity at all: "Is this the magic device that can cheapen the communication technique?"
Gao Wen nodded: "You can think so, but in fact it is much easier to use than the communication technique - although it needs to rely on a set of complex infrastructure to operate, its scale limit and unit cost are far from comparable to the communication technique .”
"I once imagined how to expand the scope of the communication technique and reduce its casting requirements. This will be of great benefit to the economy and the military, but the research has not made any progress." Baldwin couldn't help but move closer to the device, as if wanting to To carefully understand its principle, "...is a completely different route..."
"buzz—"
While speaking, there was a sudden buzzing sound from the magic net terminal, and then the projection crystal as the core brightened instantly. Duke Baldwin stepped back half a step in surprise, and saw the holographic projection above the crystal. A beautiful lady with a calm and elegant demeanor in an elegant dress.
"Ancestor, good afternoon," Hetty greeted Gawain first, and then turned to the two dukes, "Grand Duke Franklin, Grand Duchess Wilder, good afternoon."
She has never met the Duke of Baldwin, but she has read almost all the high-level nobles in the kingdom. A lot of basic knowledge about the Ansu Kingdom is the content of the textbooks in Cecil College. They are no strangers.
"Good afternoon," Baldwin replied, and after a moment of hesitation, he matched the other party with the information in his mind, "Ms. Hetty? Cecil, you are as beautiful as the rumors say."
"Thank you for your compliment."
"We have entered Silver Castle," Gao Wen said beside him, "You should have received the detailed information."
"Yes, the communication between the government affairs hall and the front line is smooth." Hetty nodded, with an undisguised relaxed smile, "I'm glad to know that your battle is going well—the extra supplies and civilian personnel sent to the north have boarded the ship from Pompeii. , using a fast mechanical ship."
Gawain breathed a little: Having a reliable and capable n-tier great-granddaughter like Hetty is really reassuring. He basically doesn't have to worry about logistics and local order, except for not being able to marry, casting spells and painting Aside from black eye cheating sick leave, Hetty has no shortcomings with him...
He sat down behind the desk, and the two guardian dukes sat on the two high-backed chairs next to him. Coupled with Hetty's holographic projection, a remote meeting that was very unusual in this era began.
"Ansu's history is over. Regarding the evaluation of this kingdom, about the merits and demerits of the kings, and about its end, these historians have to discuss it. Now we have to consider how to ensure the stability of social order and ensure the stability of the society. The survival of the people after this disaster, and the end of the state of disorder in this country as soon as possible," Gao Wen looked at Baldwin and Franklin, "Although the system of feudal lords is backward, at least one benefit has been reflected at this time—the enfeoffment of the territories. To some extent, it is like countless self-sufficient and self-sustaining small kingdoms, and the end of the Ansu kingship will not immediately lead to the collapse of the order of these territories, and we will have some time to operate."
"Yes, Victoria and I discussed this point." Bai Dewen nodded, "The two of us still have some influence among the nobles of the old country, and we will do our best to cooperate with you in this process to minimize the Rebound everywhere to ensure the stability of the national restructuring process."
Hetty also nodded: "The southern border is ready. The working group and security forces composed of the consul and officials at all levels of the government affairs department are already on standby at the Rock Fortress, ready to go to the north to restore order at any time."
"Rebuilding order in the north requires the cooperation of local forces to a certain extent. The Military Intelligence Bureau has rich experience in this regard, and I will ask Amber to assist me," Gao Wen said, "The other two guardian dukes will also assist in this process. "
After a pause, he added: "Currently the southern region has limited manpower, and the government system has limited digestion and control. It is impossible to swallow the entire Ansu in one go. Prioritize the reorganization and reconstruction of the Holy Spirit Plain area, and first restore the production functions in the hinterland of the country. The western border and the northern border... leave it to Patwin and Victoria, and I will send government officials to assist you, is there no problem?"
The two guardian dukes responded after a short thought: "No problem."
"During this process, all the old nobles must sign and obey the new law, including you two. At the same time, the military power in the two territories will be transferred to the Military Department of the Supreme Government Office. The garrison of the Government Affairs Office," Gao Wen said one by one, "the economy, military, and politics... all must be unified, and the enfeoffment system will be terminated and replaced by Cecil's law and order. Obstacles will inevitably appear, and even There will be regional and periodic repetitions, but I hope everyone can at least make one thing clear: the new era has arrived, and its advancement is inevitable, and obstacles can arise, but obstacles must eventually be eliminated.”
His gaze swept across Victoria and Baldwin, but one of the two guardian dukes maintained a calm expression, while the other was full of carefree expression.
"The era of the Moen royal family is over, and the aristocratic system of the Holy Spirit Plain has disintegrated. If there is any factor in this country that is qualified to be an obstacle, it is the two of us," Bai Dewen said with a smile, "We choose to support you, then The rest of the nobles are not qualified to be obstacles—in this regard, I am still somewhat confident."
"The Mountain Corps' vitality has been severely damaged, but the Wilder family's deterrent to the northern mountains is still there." Victoria also said briefly.
"Very good. Afterwards, I will use the system of the Principality of Cecil as the basic template, make some adaptations and improvements, and then spread it to the whole country. I plan to divide Ansu into several provinces with the highest government office in the capital as the center. , the provinces set up provincial governors, and then set up city government offices with big cities as the center, and set up city governors...
"I myself am the supreme ruler of the country, but I myself will also obey the legal constraints. At the same time, my rule over the country will be carried out through the government affairs department system. Under me, set up a grand consul as the head of the highest government affairs department. The current big The consul is Hetty alone, but I plan to add two more, with two guardian dukes in charge... After that, the combination of three grand consuls will become the norm until the system is out of date or there is a situation that has to be changed...
"The Grand Consul implements my will and carries out the specific management work of the Supreme Government Office, but he should also give me timely suggestions based on his own judgment...
"For the specific implementation method, the Supreme Government Office of the Principality of Cecil has accumulated a lot of experience. Besides, we can discuss it with the officials in the southern border..."
Gawain talked about his ideas one by one, while Hetty continued to make supplements. Gradually, Baldwin and Victoria also adapted to the rhythm, and changed from one-sided listening to fruitful communication. In the study of Francis II, belonging to Welsh Moen, they discussed how to restore the order of the country, how to rebuild the production activities damaged in the disaster, and how to establish a new national framework...
During the discussion, Gao Wen's ideas were gradually perfected—many of the ideas he put forward were actually just general frameworks, or even overly idealized frameworks with many omissions and mistakes. The greatest significance of his ideas is their inspiring focus. Under his inspiration, Baldwin and Victoria put forward a series of valuable references, which gradually filled the framework made by Gawain.
Even so, the discussion they have today is still destined to be preliminary and framework-oriented, and there must still be many parts that need to be improved and changed in line with the actual situation. A lot of trial and error, running-in, adjustment, and a lot of repetitions and setbacks... The last king of Ansu tried his best to remove the obstacles to change, but the obstacles will never disappear completely. After all, it will take time, manpower, and material resources These three major costs will be solved slowly.
Gao Wen knew this very well, and was mentally prepared for it.
Their discussion lasted for a long time, so long that everyone seemed to have forgotten the passage of time. It was not until the sun set outside the window and the castle area was lit up that the discussion came to an end, while Baldwin? Duke Franklin relaxed In a calm tone, he asked: "Then, we should come up with a name for this kingdom that is about to be born."
"The era of kings and lords is over, it is not a kingdom," Gawain said slowly, "it is an empire."
After a pause of two or three seconds, he said word by word: "Cecil Empire."
He chose to name the new empire with his current surname, to make a complete distinction from the former "Ansu Kingdom".
He will bury the former Ansu, and that ancient and once glorious kingdom will become history, together with its name. No matter from a symbolic or practical sense, the new empire must be in harmony with "Ansu" This word creates separation, which is also one of the measures to weaken the influence of the old forces.
He will also reflect his authority in the name of the new empire, and ensure the centralization and efficient operation of power from the side—in order to face the next challenges and the crises that are about to erupt, he must choose to use the method of centralization of power to improve The operational efficiency of society, in order to prepare for the crisis as soon as possible.
The study room was shrouded in solemnity for a while, and after a long time, Victoria said softly: "From now on, regardless of your merits or demerits, you must resist."
"When I chose to lead the army northward, I was ready."
"Then," Baldwin stood up from his chair, "pay tribute to the Cecil Empire."
It was Victoria who stood up next: "Salute to the Cecil Empire."
"Salute to the Cecil Empire." Hetty said the same.
Gawain glanced at the three of them, and exhaled lightly.
"It will deserve your tribute."