At two o'clock in the afternoon, the bells of the bell tower rang again in the Governor's Mansion. After the lunch break, the participants in the auditorium returned to their seats with rosy faces. It seemed that the restaurant of the Governor's Mansion was indeed sumptuous.
Governor Pauli, on the other hand, still looked exhausted mentally and physically. Whether it was the whole morning of listening or Lawrence's last words, Pauli could not take a moment to relax and was always thinking.
"Governor Pauli, how was your rest?"
Lawrence asked seemingly concerned, but in fact he was hinting at Paulie's consideration of his words.
Paulie also understood what Lawrence was saying and said:
"Didn't take much rest. I was previewing the afternoon agenda."
Among the motions in the afternoon, the most important one is undoubtedly the last one, regarding the withdrawal of troops. The implicit meaning of Pauli’s words is also very obvious:
"I won't consider it for the time being. I'll wait and see what the parliament's attitude is towards troop withdrawal."
Lawrence nodded and did not ask any more questions. He also understood what Paulie meant.
"Ahem!" The bishop cleared his throat and announced loudly that the afternoon meeting had officially begun:
"The next bill is about cutting the budget allocation for the orphanage in Ajaccio."
...
The topics in the second half of the meeting were basically focused on Ajaccioli, and the intensity of the discussion also increased a lot.
Although the farmer councilors represent their home cities, like Carlo, they all live in Ajaccioli, so these issues also involve their interests.
Although the motion mentioned all matters related to Ajaccioli, Lawrence did not pay much attention to them because he did not have the right to vote and these matters did not have much to do with him.
I don’t know how long it took, but the bishop clapped his hands and announced loudly:
"Okay, the discussion on the bill to repair streets in Beicheng District is over. Since the votes for and against are the same, it will be discussed again at the next regular meeting of the parliament. Now move on to the next bill!"
The bishop said, glanced at the agenda, and then said with a strange expression:
"The next motion... is proposed by Ciro Russell, the MP for the West District of Ajaccio..."
"Um?"
Lawrence immediately raised his head and braced himself. After the face-to-face contact with Ciro, Lawrence had to take seriously every move he made for this conspirator who spoke sweetly and was brave.
No one knows, maybe an inconspicuous matter will become a key node in the web of conspiracy spun by Siro.
The other congressmen present also felt a little strange.
Because in their impression, this Ciro Russell rarely even participated in parliament, gave up his right to vote for various reasons every time, and rarely appeared in everyone's sight.
Today, Ciro not only attended the parliament but also submitted a bill, which made everyone a little surprised and curious.
"Um... what Senator Xiro proposed is," the bishop glanced at the outline, his expression became even weirder, and he announced:
“Discussions on increasing the size and powers of the patrol in Ajaccio.”
"What?!"
Most of the people present, including Lawrence, were surprised. Everyone knew that Lawrence, as the actual commander of the patrol, had a deep hatred for the union.
Not only did they publicly execute the union members, but they also imprisoned One-Eye, a prominent leader of the union, in the patrol team's dungeon. Instead of retaliating, Siro actually helped the patrol team expand its size and authority?
"Could it be that Congressman Ciro took the initiative to show his favor to Lawrence regardless of the previous suspicion?"
"I guess so. It seems that Representative Ciro is really a noble person."
"Yes, Laurence Bonaparte is also a young man of outstanding character. The two of them will definitely resolve their differences in the future."
...
Some congressmen began to whisper to the people around them. They didn't know Siro's terrifying reputation in the underground world. They thought it was Siro who took the initiative to ask Lawrence for peace, and they all sighed with emotion.
"Something's wrong..."
Lawrence touched his chin and vaguely noticed something strange. He was sure that Silla could not be kind-hearted to help him expand his power, let alone ask for peace with him.
"Quiet! Quiet!"
The bishop raised his voice to calm down the chatter below, and then began to read the outline of the motion:
"Congressman Xiro hopes to double the size of the patrol team to about a hundred people. At the same time, given that the security situation in Xicheng District is very bad, his patrol team can be stationed in Xicheng District to maintain order and security."
"In addition..." the bishop continued reading:
"Due to the extremely high unemployment rate in Xicheng District, Councilor Xiro suggested that all new members of the patrol team be recruited from Xicheng District."
"Hey...you really have bad intentions."
Lawrence curled his lips and saw through Silla's thoughts at a glance.
Expanding the size of the patrol team, but recruiting them from the Xicheng District, is undoubtedly a way for Ciro to put his own people under Lawrence. In addition, Lawrence must also treat the new team members equally and let them share the same benefits as the old team members.
That wealth.
If Lawrence does not want to reduce the share of the old players, he must subsidize the new players out of his own pocket, which is absolutely impossible with his current income level.
Finally, requiring the patrol team to be stationed in Xicheng District is a big challenge for Lawrence.
The gangs in Xicheng District are complex, and maintaining law and order is not easy. If Lawrence fails to do just one thing, and coupled with Ciro's secret instigation, he will not only lose the support of the people, but will be despised by them.
Not to mention that there is Silla's base camp, and he will definitely send people to obstruct it in every possible way. Lawrence may not be able to move even an inch in the Xicheng District.
"A naked conspiracy... This damn Silla does have some tricks."
Lawrence's eyes were cold, he glanced at Silla who was showing a fake smile to everyone, and thought so.
Since Lawrence was attending the meeting as a staff officer, he did not have the right to speak or vote, so he had to sit quietly and listen to the debate among the members.
After a heated discussion, members finally began to vote.
Fortunately, Lawrence glanced at Carlo and signaled him to vote against it. The final voting result was four votes in favor, four votes against, and one abstention.
Lawrence breathed a sigh of relief, at least this issue could be postponed to the next meeting.
"Did all members confirm their votes? If they all confirmed, then this issue will be left to..."
The bishop was speaking at the speaking table, but was suddenly interrupted by two coughs.
Everyone immediately focused their attention on the top of the long table.
"Ahem, I also want to express some opinions."
It was Governor Pauli who interrupted the bishop, stood up and said.
Lawrence frowned slightly, having a bad premonition.
Although Pauli does not have the right to vote, as the highest governor of Corsica, he can certainly express his opinions on the motion:
"I think this bill is still very valuable. If it can be passed as soon as possible, it will be of great benefit to the development of Corsica."
When saying this, Pauly also pronounced the word "as soon as possible" repeatedly. The implication is very obvious. He hopes to pass this bill now.
The congressmen were not stupid people. They immediately understood what Pauli meant. They raised their hands to signal to the bishop that the vote had not been finalized yet, as a way to show their goodwill to Pauli.
Even Carlo, seeing that his continued vote against the bill was in vain, made an apologetic gesture to Lawrence and confirmed his vote in favor.
Lawrence sat expressionlessly and nodded to Carlo. He didn't care about Carlo's normal speculation.
As for Pauly, this old fox must have figured out what Ciro meant, and deliberately used his influence to get the bill passed, thereby beating Lawrence.
"At the same time..." Paulie continued:
"Mr. Bonaparte, the deputy captain of the Ajaccio patrol, is also at the meeting. We might as well listen to his opinion."
Lawrence couldn't help but rolled his eyes secretly. Paulie was obviously afraid that he would be beaten too hard and that he would be completely at a disadvantage in the fight with Silla, so he wanted to take the opportunity to put forward some conditions.
"This old fox is really good at balancing." Lawrence thought to himself, then stood up, bowed to everyone, and said:
“I very much agree with the opinions of Representative Sirro and Governor Pauli, but at the same time, as the deputy captain of the patrol team, I also propose to make an amendment to this bill: In order to ensure the quality of patrol troops, I hope that when the recruitment is expanded, the patrol team can be
The team independently selects suitable candidates.”
Paulie nodded, knowing that Lawrence was trying to prevent Silla from inserting people into Lawrence's hands, and it was not an excessive condition, so he said:
"Mr. Bonaparte's suggestion makes sense, Congressman Ciro, what do you think?"
"I agree." Ciro said. He also saw that Pauli was trying to balance him and Lawrence, so he directly accepted Lawrence's proposal.
Seeing that both Ciro, the proposer, and Governor Pauli agreed with Lawrence's suggestion, other congressmen also followed suit and expressed their approval of Lawrence's amendments to the bill.
Paulie sat back in his seat and whispered to Lawrence next to him:
"This is for Corsica's benefit."
Lawrence smiled and said nothing.
He did not feel that Pauli's behavior was a betrayal, but silently praised it as an excellent check and balance method. If it were him, the method might be even more drastic.
"It's just..." Lawrence thought to himself:
"My Lord Governor, if it is for the benefit of Corsica, when I need to sit in your chair one day, I will not hesitate to take it."