Shadow of great britain

After Mill left, it didn't take long before Roebuck took the initiative to stand up and politely bid farewell to Arthur and Elder.

"Although I don't know what John intends to do, I hope that if he doesn't succeed, I can make some progress on my end. As it happens, I have an appointment with Mr. Edwin Chadwick, Mr. Bentham's secretary, in a little while, and I have to Talk to him about your situation and see if there is anything we can do.”

After saying this, Roebuck picked up his hat and left the cafe with a smile.

As soon as Roebuck left, Elder leaned back on the seat in the coffee shop: "Look, look! We students at the University of London still have energy! As soon as you open your mouth, even the East India Company and the The Westminster Review is up and running."

Compared to Elder's inexplicable confidence, Arthur seemed unusually calm.

He tasted the bitterness of the coffee, which was neutralized by the taste of milk: "I thought I could get rid of the sophistication of the world by changing places, but now it seems that I have to pay attention to this thing no matter where I am. Promotion in the government is all about close relationships, and this Or the situation after the reform, I don’t know how corrupt and chaotic the government was in the era before the civil service reform.”

Elder took a biscuit and threw it into his mouth: "The previous era? It was an amazing era before. I heard my uncle say that in the late 18th century, when he was just an ordinary captain, the Navy Department internally purchased Selling one's official position is almost obvious.

Charles Middleton, the Comptroller of the Admiralty, earned 300 guineas a year just by selling his subordinates' positions. Moreover, he usually did not go to work himself, but spent 500 pounds from his salary to hire someone to handle the work for him. , I used the remaining salary and the income from selling my official position to bet on horses, play cards, etc., and live a comfortable life. "

Arthur pinched his chin and said: "I'm not surprised that there is such a thing in the Navy Department. After all, the salary there is high. If you switch to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, I'm afraid it won't be so easy to fool you, right?"

Elder raised his eyebrows and said: "Yes! The salaries of our internal affairs officers and subordinate departments are indeed notoriously low. Because of this, your chief clerk of the internal affairs department spends 60 pounds to find someone to fill in for him. .

On the other hand, he also collects remuneration to work for senior civil servants in the Chancery. I saw in the parliamentary work report before that he seemed to be able to earn 227 pounds and 3 shillings a year in return for this part-time job. This is It's much higher than his income from his job. "

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help but stare at Elder with his eyes wide open for a long time.

Elder felt uncomfortable looking at him and asked dissatisfiedly: "What do you see me doing?"

Arthur put down the coffee cup and apologized to Elder in shame: "Elder, it seems that I have misunderstood you in the past."

"Have you misunderstood me?" Elder chewed the biscuit carelessly.

Arthur sighed: "I used to think that you would only read some erotic literature at most. I really didn't expect that you would actually read the parliamentary work report."

Elder snorted and let out a breath: "What do you know? Parliamentary work reports are much dirtier than erotic literature, and sometimes the things written in them are worse than the sewers in the East District. Arthur, feel sorry for me, the man who once The aspiring young man Elder Carter is dead, and what stands before you now is just a body filled with desires. Corruption has always been the issue that interests me the most.

Things like misappropriating public funds to earn interest can only be regarded as child's play among civil servants. If I hadn't read the parliamentary work report, I would never have imagined that they could turn corruption into an art form.

They first recorded the treasury account books in Arabic numerals, and then translated them into official Latin copies. They made the first changes when submitting them to the Ministry of Finance, made another change when the Ministry of Finance made the budget, and made another change when the budget was distributed to various departments. They knew how to make changes, and they just made changes over and over again. They copied and transcribed a lot of accounts, and it was normal for them to make mistakes. They took the opportunity to move around in these wrong accounts.

Relying on this alone, the War Department's annual account deficit amounted to 40,000 to 50,000 pounds, and the taxes that the Land Office tax collectors should have paid in 1780 were 390,000 pounds less than the actual amount paid. "

Arthur couldn't help but raise his eyebrows when he heard this: "Although I know that the financial audit offices of various departments usually work hard, but in 1780, the Land Bureau's surrender revenue alone could have a deficit of 390,000 pounds. Isn't this an exaggeration? ? Even if the Audit Office hires someone to do the job, it wouldn’t be so incompetent, right?"

Elder cursed and punched the table with his fist: "Audit Office? Those people are the ones who have the most to eat! When we were fighting the North American War of Independence with those rebels, the two auditors of the War Department The official received 16,565 pounds and 10,331 pounds in tips alone in one year. Think about it, why do people tip so much when they have nothing to do?"

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help laughing and scolding: "Elder, your damn memory is too detailed, even in single digits. If you can use this memory for scientific research, even if you The only sun in your heart, Sir Isaac Newton, cannot shake your position in the slightest."

Hearing this, Elder nodded in agreement and said: "To be honest, I have always thought that the reason why Sir Isaac Newton was able to develop calculus is inextricably linked to his being the director of the Royal Mint. If If I can sit in his position, my mathematical skills will definitely be greatly improved. I have never been interested in listing calculations on scratch paper, but if I am assigned to count money, I will overcome anything. The poor mathematical mind passed down from generation to generation in the Carter family.”

Arthur smiled and replied: "But instead of becoming a justice, you should shamelessly ask your uncle to borrow money to study at the Bar Association. As long as you can get a lawyer's license, if you enter the Chancery Hall in the future, I guarantee you will earn a lot of money." The pots are full.

As you know, judges have been well paid since the overthrow of Charles I in 1640 and the establishment of the Long Parliament. As early as that time, their salaries were fixed at 1,000 pounds per year, and this money was paid directly from customs revenue, not even affected by the budget preparation of the Treasury.

After the promulgation of the "Act of Succession to the Crown" in 1701, in addition to the fixed salary, there was a lot of legal additional income, such as the appointment fees of court clerks under his command, judgment fees, agreement litigation fees, office supplies fees, and a lot of me I can’t even explain the additional subsidies. The total amount of these messy incomes is at least five or six hundred pounds.

Of course, it cannot be ruled out that some judges can also obtain wealth from illegal channels that we are not aware of. For example, when the "Beer Bill" was not passed a while ago, the application for a pub business license also required a permit from the local magistrate. "

According to Elder's character, his eyes would light up when he heard these things, but Mr. Carter, who had been talking about corruption just now, fell into silence now.

He stirred the coffee cup with a spoon and frowned, as if listening to something.

Seeing his appearance, Arthur was about to ask.

Unexpectedly, Elder suddenly raised his hand and interrupted him. His ears twitched: "Shh! Don't make any sound. I seem to hear the sound of a beautiful lady crying."

"Is there a lady crying?"

Arthur raised his eyes and glanced around the cafe. This early in the morning, there were only a few customers in the cafe, and he quickly discovered the person Elder was talking about.

Sitting on a seat in the east corner of the hall, he spotted a woman wearing a beige wide-brimmed hat.

The red devil who was leaning against the window saw her and couldn't help but put his hands on his chest and began to recite poetry to praise her appearance.

“The jet-black hair was combed back and tied into a bow in a simple manner.

A pair of big black eyes under the two eyebrows are full of sadness, and the straight bridge of the nose exuding arrogance complements the arch of the lips.

The calm and serene red lips are tightly closed. The bleak life has taken away your smile. The broadness of your forehead cannot change the narrowness of his heart.

Oh, my girl, why do you trust your destiny to others?

Use your broad forehead full of perseverance to think as hard as you can, who is the Messiah who can save your destiny? "

The Red Devil's poems flourished, and Arthur, Britain's first literary critic, couldn't help but glance at him and commented: "Destiny, and the fucking Messiah, have a mystical flavor!"

Elder thought Arthur was taunting him, so he couldn't help but glared: "Arthur, what are you talking about?"

"It's nothing." Arthur raised his chin and raised it slightly towards the lady who was silently wiping tears in the corner: "The lady who is crying looks like we know each other."

"you know?"

Elder's eyes almost popped out when he heard this. He lowered his voice and cursed: "Arthur, damn, how come you know a woman? Have you really become Paganini of Scotland Yard? You're so romantic. Music master?

Playing the piano just for food? Is the European tour just a casual thing? One of Paganini's hands that grasped the wings of music reached into the dirty casino, and the other reached into the curtain of the prostitute with the fragrant body odor.

And you, with one of your hands that can perform exquisite Fiore style sword moves, has reached into the dirty East End of London, where are you going to reach with the other hand? "

Arthur pressed his hands down to signal him to calm down: "Don't get excited, Elder, I have one hand in the East End of London, and the other is intended to be dedicated to the field of electromagnetic research. Of course, I can't guarantee that it will still be like this in the future. Plot. Because if I were sacked this time, the hand I took out of EastEnders might consider extending it somewhere else."

Elder held out a finger and warned: "Until my problem is solved, your hand is not allowed to go anywhere. That bitch Alexander already has a son, and Charles is also secretly having a passionate affair with a mysterious girl. , if you continue to beat me to it, how can I have the nerve to live at Lancaster Gate?"

Arthur apologized: "You can move out if you don't have the dignity to live there. I have never advocated forcing you to move. I think humans should have the right to move freely."

"Ah..." Elder covered his face and said with a sad expression: "Arthur, I didn't expect you to value our friendship so little. Are you forcing me to sleep on the street?"

"Living on the street? You are my friend, how could I watch you sleeping on the street?"

When Elder heard this, he just snorted and crossed his arms and said, "You still have some conscience."

Seeing his appearance, Arthur smiled and said: "Elder, have you forgotten my profession? I am a policeman. If I find you sleeping on the street, I will definitely send you to jail. .You know, especially in an area like this next to Hyde Park."

When Elder heard this, he was about to argue with Arthur.

Unexpectedly, the bell in the cafe rang, and a gentleman wearing a black hat walked in from the door.

Arthur took a look at the man, and suddenly pushed the hat on his head down a little, just covering his eyes.

Elder was stunned by him: "What are you doing? It was just a joke, there is no need to feel guilty like this."

Arthur didn't say much about Elder's rough words. He just murmured: "Viscount Melbourne? What is he doing here?"