mechanical court

In 1457 of the solar calendar, the Hall of King Quan.

In the morning sun, the outer wall painted with religious-style reliefs floats with sacred light, and rows of stone seats are distributed inward in a reverse radiation pattern.The twelve-storey arch columns extend upwards step by step, supporting the layer upon layer of arches immersed in the sunlight, while the stone statues of the Menes gods are placed in the shadow of the backlight, silently watching the noisy hall.

On the top of the vault, the eternal battle between the sun god Atum and the void serpent is painted. The gods and heroic spirits fight side by side to witness the bright future. The sacred green occupies the main part of the mural, but the evil red is distributed in the core. .The three sides of the hall are decorated with exquisite hollowed-out arcades decorated with gold threads, and the delicate white marble columns support the corridor roofs-these arcade roofs were originally gilded, but they were all stripped | sold off because of financial problems.

The sunlight was projected from the circular skylight at the end of the hall, passing through the deliberately dark throne part, carving out the golden Sun Throne out of the darkness.

The ministers of Fawangyuan, Sizhengyuan, Discipline Yuan, Conscripting Yuan, Planning and Inspection Yuan, and Buzhen Yuan occupy the front seats, representatives of the major temples each occupy a division, and the defense and inspection ministers of Ekhtaton City occupy a division.Then there are representatives of officials from various provinces who are in charge of supervising the governor-general, as well as senior generals of the Gyeonggi Military Region.

The seats on the left and right sides closest to the throne protrude outwards, and each has an independent seat—belonging to the High Priest and the Head of the Corona Knights respectively. At this time, the seat of the High Priest is vacant.

Almost all the high-ranking officials serving in Akhtatun were present, and most of them were talking to each other in low voices because of what happened last night.The section of the Pluto Temple was even more crowded. Xia Li, who was surrounded in the center, covered her small mouth to pretend to be reserved, but her eyes, smiling like crescent moons, had completely betrayed her mood at this time.

"Welcome Your Majesty!" With the shout of the court attendant, the Palace of King Quan quickly fell silent.

Ivan led Reni and a group of guards of honor into the Hall of King Quan from the eastern arcade. Seeing this, all the ministers stood up and saluted, watching him ascend the Sun Throne.No matter what they think in their hearts, everyone has a respectful expression on the surface.

Twelve icy sculptures of the main gods are distributed on both sides of the space, passing through the straight road covered with scarlet carpet, the throne on the high platform is in sight.The bright golden color is sacred and majestic, but still majestic. The ground like a mirror reflects the rising sun on the ceiling, the pale golden light covers the throne, and the rainbow light fills the hall. It really has the aura of being king.

Walking up the steps, Ivan sat on the large throne, bathed in the golden sunlight, and the awe-inspiring power immediately filled every inch of the hall.

Looking down from his position, the power structure of the Menesian Empire is clear at a glance. The central seats facing the throne are senior officials at all levels of the Fawangyuan, Sizhengyuan, Discipline Yuan, Conscripting Yuan, Planning and Inspection Yuan, and Buzhen Yuan.The religious high-level is in the first division on the left, and the chief official of the royal capital is in the second division on the left.Representatives of officials from various provinces responsible for supervising the governor-general occupy the first division on the right, and senior generals of the Gyeonggi Military Region occupy the second division.

Finally, the two seats protruding outward in the shape of bull horns are the positions of the high priest and the head of the crowned knights.

one-one-one-one

Although he has never been in power since he ascended the throne, he still has a good understanding of the official system of the Menesian Empire after being exposed to it for more than ten years.

The administrative system of this ancient empire is still in the state of nobles and priests participating in politics. It can be said that the high-ranking officials in all major departments are nobles, and they are basically hereditary monopoly by big families.The Sun King is nominally the master of the empire, but the interests of these great nobles cannot be easily shaken even by the royal power.

Under the royal power, the Six Halls have the greatest power, namely, the Fawangyuan (equivalent to the Ministry of Officials), the Sizhengyuan (equivalent to the Ministry of Punishment), the Precepts Yuan (equivalent to the Ministry of Rites), the Conscripting Yuan (equivalent to the Ministry of War), and the Ministry of Planning and Investigation. Hospital (equivalent to the Ministry of Households), cloth town hospital (equivalent to the Ministry of Industry).

Without exception, the chief officials of the Sixth Court were hereditary from the great nobles, and the rest of the soup was almost divided up by the middle and lower nobles. As for the common people—in this civilization that had no imperial examinations, the only way for common people to be promoted was to join the army.

"Let's discuss politics according to the usual practice." Ivan glanced at the vacant high priest's seat, and then looked at Dellu, the leader of the Corona Knights, who was full of awe, and said calmly.

After a moment of silence, Xerxes, the minister of palm prints of the Buzhenyuan, stood up, bowed and saluted, and said respectfully: "Since the circuit of the royal court has been laid, I ask His Majesty to allow the laying of a circuit around the city so that the people of the royal city can It can also use electricity."

"Is there any money in the Planning and Inspection Institute?" Ivan asked.

"Returning to Your Majesty, recently there have been frequent outbreaks of evil disasters and constant wars, and the Bureau of Planning and Investigation has no money to spend." A plump lady in a gauze dress with shoulders quickly stood up and reported.

"Then how much money does the Bureau of Statistics have?" Ivan frowned.

"Return to Your Majesty, there are still 50 deben." The lady said cautiously.

"That's all the money left? Forget it. We'll discuss the circuit around the city later." Ivan waved his hand to signal them to sit down.

"As ordered."

"As ordered."

The two palm seal ministers sat down one after another. No one noticed that after confirming the Sun King's attitude, the six palm seal ministers breathed a sigh of relief almost at the same time.

"Your Majesty! The Lizardmen in the southern border have repeatedly violated the border, and the local people are in hell. I implore Your Majesty to send troops to wipe out this wave of cold-blooded beasts." Garnis, the palm print minister of the Garrison Academy, stood up and said sternly.

"Well, let's do whatever you want. The specific matters are up to you." Ivan nodded.

"As ordered!"

"Your Majesty! There is a severe drought in the Ganze area in the north. I hope the royal court will reduce or exempt taxes."

"That's right."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty! The relaxation of armaments in the Sinai province has led to the plundering of the border city by the sea people, and hundreds of people have been killed or injured. I also ask your majesty to issue an edict to remove the local Nuoma He from his post, and escort him to the royal court for questioning!"

"Investigate the matter clearly and follow the rules."

"As ordered!"

……

Three hours later, Ivan's first political discussion after he seized power was successfully concluded. During the process, his most frequent speeches were 'sure' and 'follow the rules'.

In fact, this seemingly peaceful discussion of government affairs between the monarch and his ministers was the first trial for Yiwen and the great nobles.

Facing the new king who single-handedly defeated the queen, the great nobles showed an attitude of obedience, but they were also testing his political intentions.On the other hand, Ivan carefully observed the factions of the nobles, and at the same time expressed his conservative attitude: no tossing, no rash advancement, respect for the objective laws of things, and everything is based on maintaining stability.

The reason why Ivan did this was that he understood a truth - the broken ship of Menis could not withstand a big toss, and if he wanted to toss, he needed to be mentally prepared to rebuild a new ship.

Whether it is power or material foundation, he has not yet launched a comprehensive reform. The most important thing at present is to stabilize power.And before popularizing compulsory education for all, the political operation of the aristocratic elite is better than the political operation of the ordinary people with a smear of darkness.After all, in this era, only the nobles can reserve and pass on the knowledge of governing the country, and the royal power also needs these people to consolidate, so there is no need to turn against them for the time being.

But not turning against the nobles does not mean not turning against the big families, especially the families that monopolize the six halls, they must be changed.Otherwise, if these bastards unite to deceive the top and the bottom, wouldn't I be deaf and blind! ?

Chapter 7 Harness

In the semi-circular white balcony, Ivan and Ellome sat on two folding chairs. The afterglow of the setting sun slanted across the parasols, dyeing the white ground into light red.Carrying a white porcelain kettle, Elulomei is pouring clear water into a glass. She is wearing white silver-trimmed casual clothes, long-sleeved trousers, and her silver hair is dancing in the wind.

Ivan leaned lazily on the back of the chair, squinted at the red sky, and listened to the brisk sound of the other party pouring tea, and seemed to be able to fall asleep at any time comfortably.

"Please use it."

She filled the glass to [-]% full and gently pushed it close to the other party.

Fresh fruit pulp and flower petals are poured into the glass, and the soup is bright. Ivan moved closer to the steamy cup, took a sip of the aroma, and nodded in satisfaction:

"It's so refreshing, my cousin really knows how to enjoy life. The taste is so sweet, and it's a drink made by my cousin herself. I must taste it carefully."

He picked up the drink from the tea table in admiration, took a sip, and his nostrils were filled with a refreshing fragrance.Ivan shook the light green drink in his hand, took a sip, and after a few seconds, narrowed his eyes in enjoyment:

"Hmm... delicious! With such nourishing nectar, it's no wonder your spirit can recover so quickly."

"What's the matter? I need you, the unique Sun King, to come here to find me, a useless person?" Her voice was very soft and calm, as if she was describing an unimportant matter.

"The complete version of the Sun Golden Sutra."

Holding the fragrant cup, Ivan looked at the floating flesh in the hot water, and said calmly: "When I was discussing politics in the Hall of King Quan in the morning, I made a special trip to ask the priests of the temple, and they said that the Sun Golden Scripture has been In your hand. That's why I couldn't wait to come over and want you to give it to me."

"It turned out to be for the Sun Golden Sutra."

Ai Luluomei put down the cup with a chuckle, and turned her eyes to the sky, the afterglow of the setting sun was reflected in her pupils, and her voice also revealed a trace of carelessness and laziness:

"I thought you came here to understand the medicine, but I didn't expect you to want the complete scripture more than your own life."

"If there is really something in this world that can poison me to death, I'd like to taste it." Ivan put down the cup heavily, and the juice immediately splashed half a foot high.