Rise of the Argentine Empire

The city of Blanca now boasts a large proportion of young people who, after work, release their hormones to the fullest in the evenings.

Around eight or nine in the evening, no one plays soccer anymore. Young couples and married couples are more inclined to watch tango performances or go to bars.

Tango performance venues are concentrated in the eastern part of the city, overlapping more with the residences of young people and close to where they work.

In fact, the content of tango performances is quite similar. Performances usually start after nine in the evening. Viewers can choose to have dinner and watch the performance, or they can just watch the performance, in which case they can go later.

These performance venues are not large, usually accommodating only two or three hundred spectators. The entrance fee is basically between 50-150 pesos.

Around the tango stage are audience seats with tables, and there is also a snack and barbecue ordering service, with prices varying according to your budget. As for drinks, only beer is provided, increasing revenue for the tango dance halls.

The performances alternate between dance and song. The men wear bow ties and dark evening suits, while the women wear long dresses with high slits on one side.

Tango dance parties feature more singing than dancing, and are fiery and unrestrained. The dancing partners do not look at each other, and when positioning, both men and women look to their left.

Tango music has a lively rhythm, somewhat like modern-day DJs and Indian film dances. Its distinctive syncopation is its defining characteristic, and the dance steps are gorgeous and elegant, passionate and unrestrained, and infinitely varied. Cross steps, leg kicks, jumps, and spins are dazzling.

The lyrics of the songs extensively use street slang. The city of Blanca is now a melting pot, even more rich and diverse, and good singers often resonate with the audience.

However, more elegant theater performances are very rare, usually starting between nine and ten in the evening. Watching opera or theater performances usually requires wearing a suit and tie, otherwise entry is not allowed, and the ticket prices are often expensive, with a ticket costing 1000 pesos or more. Those who watch plays and operas are all wealthy people.

During the performance season, various theaters stage newly produced plays. You can go to the Blanca City Grand Theater to see opera or to the San Martin Theater to see plays, but the ticket prices are relatively high.

In the summer, the theaters are closed, and the city hall often organizes street performances in various communities, providing low-income people who cannot afford to go to the theater during normal times and cannot go on vacation in the summer with the opportunity to appreciate high art.

Of course, a more fashionable thing for young people to do now is to go to bars to dance and watch movies.

The number of bars in Blanca is moderate, also to provide young people with a place to release stress. Regular bars only provide beer with low alcohol content, and some bars will provide high alcohol content, but they are often investigated by the police department.

Some bars are old buildings, Spanish Gothic style, a combination of classical and modern, which is even more exciting than tango dance halls. Under the dim lights, everyone can go up and twist a bit. The air is filled with smoke, strong drum beats, young and crazy men and women. Even sitting in the corner is filled with the clinking of glasses, and some are blowing on wine bottles.

As for night movies, watching night movies is the preferred entertainment for most people. Blanca now has a total of 25 cinemas throughout the city, distributed in various districts, including the new district.

The young people of Blanca City like to go to Columbus Avenue in the eastern district to watch movies the most.

This is a 1-kilometer-long pedestrian street, extended from the old campus of the former National Southern University, and was intensively developed by San Jose, undergoing a lot of renovation.

It has formed a new commercial street, with six or seven new-style cinemas concentrated on both sides, as well as a dozen famous French and Italian restaurants, cafes, fast food restaurants, and even Chinese restaurants.

At the brightly lit entrance of the restaurant, the aroma of grilled meat wafts from the fiery charcoal fire. The cafe is dimly lit, filled with customers chatting leisurely.

People strolling along the pedestrian street at night not only watch a movie, but also relax their nerves and relieve the fatigue of daytime work in this lively atmosphere.

The films are shown in a loop, from the afternoon until after midnight. Buying a ticket once allows you to watch repeatedly, with no time limit and no assigned seating.

After the movie is over, most people are not in a hurry to go home, but stroll along the street, looking at the various goods in the shop windows or having a cup of coffee in a cafe.

In fact, there is something even more exciting. Blanca prohibits small casinos and illegal gambling, but San Jose does not prohibit horse racing.

The horse racing competition is located in a traditional racecourse in the eastern district. It was not demolished by San Jose during the expansion of the city, but was preserved. This is an important evening entertainment project for people who like excitement.

Although it is late at night, the Blanca racecourse is crowded with people. The numbers displayed on the huge betting board are constantly changing, filled with a more crazy and frenzied atmosphere.

Nothing is more attractive than horse racing. At the moment when betting is closed before the start, there is silence in the field, but as soon as the horses rush out of the track, the stands immediately boil.

People shout and yell, waving the pieces of paper in their hands, their eyes closely following the horse they bet on.

After the game, the winners cheered and jumped, some stopped at the right time, immediately cashed out, and then called friends to go out for a big barbecue and beer. Some losers beat their chests and stamped their feet. Most people, regardless of winning or losing, rushed into the betting hall to bet on the next game.

In the Ahriki district in the west of the city, there is also a larger racecourse, covering an area of 1,000 acres, with 11 tracks. The Ahriki district is now a gathering area for the newly rich. The gamblers are full of gentlemanly demeanor and never shout loudly, but the bets are surprisingly large.

These wealthy people spend a lot of money. Sometimes they may spend Argentina's wealth for ten years in one night. A bet of 10,000 US dollars is very common here.

Like the state borders in the United States, many are straight lines. The national borders in Europe are also not very prominent. Many people who have been to Europe have experienced crossing borders by car without feeling any different.

This is because capitalist countries implement a small government and a large society. The mayor only provides services and does not participate in the operation of some enterprises. Under the conditions of a planned economy, the role of zoning is also not significant. The Soviet Union implemented a completely planned economy. With Moscow's economic development, an administrative order could move a factory from Ukraine to Kazakhstan.

However, in Blanca City, La Pampa Province, and San Martín City, administrative divisions began to play a huge role.

The Blanca City Hall operates a large number of state-owned enterprises and is very successful. It also stimulates the economy, formulates various policies and taxes conducive to economic development, and stimulates and integrates the potential of various districts.

Blanca City can now be called the "Mayor's Economy" or the "Saint Hilaire Economy."

The key role of the Mayor of Blanca City is reflected in the appointment of personnel. Saint Hilaire appointed a group of civil servants who know how to manage the economy and provided them with a big stage.

In the past, the La Pampa Provincial Government was not very strong, with six departments: Internal Affairs, Economy, Public Works, Education and Culture, Health, and Rural Affairs, as well as several secretariats.

Now there is a seventh department, the Department of Defense.

The Department of Defense is a new department in La Pampa Province, modeled after the Cordoba Province Defense Force. In Argentine provinces, apart from Buenos Aires, there is very little intervention in the cities, just as it is difficult for the Argentine Presidential Palace to intervene in the provinces.

After all, Argentina implements a federal system, and each province has a considerable degree of autonomy. Although this is not conducive to centralism or economic development, it is a great benefit to the current Saint Hilaire, who can unscrupulously enhance the strength of Blanca City and La Pampa Province.

Now, the Argentine provinces promulgate their own constitutions in accordance with the principles of the constitution, elect members of parliament and senior officials, and have independent legislative, administrative, and judicial organs, which are not subordinate to the federal power organs.

The federal government can only intervene in local affairs in the event of riots, foreign invasions, or when local authorities request support, which is very similar to the United States.

Recently, the adjustment of administrative divisions in Blanca City has objectively created good external conditions for Blanca City. How to develop in the future depends on people.

The effect of this zoning adjustment in Blanca City has already appeared, and its significance is far-reaching. First, the new provincial capital, Blanca City, is the biggest winner, and its economic strength has been greatly enhanced. Second, the citizens of several autonomous cities that have been incorporated into Blanca City have received the greatest benefits, and their incomes have increased. Third, the La Pampa Provincial Government has also received a lot of benefits, the relationship has been straightened out, and expenditures have been reduced. Moreover, the future development direction has been clarified, which is to expand and strengthen the coastal economic belt and form the second largest Santa Rosa metropolitan area.

Saint Hilaire is regarded as the number three figure in La Pampa Province, a shadow senior official, and is still responsible for governing Blanca City, the provincial capital. This is a special case in La Pampa Province and also a special case in Argentina, in recognition of Saint Hilaire's contribution to leading Blanca City.

And Senior Official Latta is about to step down, which means that Saint Hilaire can run for senior official if he has ideas. If he wants to be a senior official, he must amend the La Pampa Constitution. Saint Hilaire is now less than 25 years old, and age is indeed a problem. It is generally accepted that only those over 30 are eligible to run for senior official positions.

Of course, Saint Hilaire looks more mature. After adding a beard, he looks like he is twenty-eight or nine years old, which is also what attracts people to him.

To be honest, there are no age restrictions for being a senior official for the time being, but to be honest, the original La Pampa Province had two or three hundred thousand people, which is the size of a small county town. Now, with one million people, it is at most equivalent to a medium-sized city.

Saint Hilaire has had many private gatherings with Senior Official Latta and has gained a lot of support. Carlton Latta, the youngest son of Senior Official Latta, has just graduated from the University of Santa Fe and has been arranged by Saint Hilaire to work in a state-owned company under the Blanca City Investment Promotion Department.

If you want to be a civil servant, you have to take an exam, which is at the end of the year. This is not a big problem. Now Saint Hilaire is also eager for talents, not to mention that university graduates are all dragons and phoenixes among people, and these exams cannot stump them.

… … … …

Recently, Saint Hilaire has cracked down severely on illegal immigration among the people and supported companies that regularize immigration.

He cracked down on an illegal slave trade organization, which can be described as a one-stop service.

This organization illegally transfers people from other countries to Argentina and also conducts training and brainwashing.

In order to achieve its ultimate goal, this criminal organization imprisoned this group of immigrants from Paraguay and Bolivia through illegal means such as threats, deception, and violent threats.

They were trained outside Blanca City, and finally the illegal immigrants were transferred from Blanca City to the countryside for agricultural product planting and packaging, and some entered the ranches to work.

Moreover, they paid a small amount of wages, or simply did not pay at all.

It's no different from the slave trade, and the methods are very cruel.

"They were always handcuffed with ropes and locked in a room. They had nothing to eat and were beaten with wooden sticks every day. If they were disobedient or did not meet the work requirements, they would be locked in a small dark room. If they were girls, it would be even more tragic…"

Saint Hilaire's defense force rescued these poor people, numbering more than a thousand.

They arranged for them to be treated in hospitals and arranged for accommodation and psychological doctors, and used the confiscated illegal income to compensate them.

They promised to arrange jobs for them and get out of the psychological shadow.

It's just that some people have become dull and mentally abnormal, and can only be sent to welfare homes.