MWC – Chapter 167 The Beginning of the Protagonist (Part 2)

I AM DROPPING THIS NOVEL. IF ANYONE WANTS TO CONTINUE THEY CAN. IF POSSIBLE PLEASE SHARE THE LINK SO I CAN BINGE READ TOO.

A knock came on the door, and someone handed Du Jiahe a small slip of paper.

The discussion was drawing to a close. By now, most Grand Duke Party members agreed that the Privy Council’s proposal was, overall, more advantageous than disadvantageous for their party. They should vote in full support of it.

“Colleagues, a handwritten note from Justice Party Leader Gao Wangling states that the Justice Party and nine allied members, plus an independent she persuaded, will vote for Representative Lu Qianxing as a City Council member.” Du Jiahe read the note aloud, his face expressionless.

Lu Ming frowned, feeling somewhat stifled, though he knew it wasn’t the place to voice his annoyance or say anything harsh.

“Oh? In that case, I think our party and our allies should fully support Qianxing as well!” Wei Baozeng was earnest; he rarely showed such a serious expression in party discussions.

“But even if all of us vote for Representative Lu Qianxing, that only adds up to a little over twenty votes! It’s meaningless, isn’t it?” Dissenter Dong Wenquan, an influential party member and chairman of Dong Ji Gold, spoke up. He was also the first prominent party member Lu Ming had met.

Wei Baozeng frowned at him. “So, who else has a chance of getting into the City Council?”

A representative named Wang laughed. “The Free Citizens Alliance supports Representative Dong’s entry into the council. If our entire party also supports him, the votes would certainly pass the halfway mark.”

Indeed, with 57 representatives in total, the Free Citizens Alliance held 19 seats, and the Grand Duke Party 13, for a combined total of 32. Achieving a simple majority in voting would be easy.

Wei Baozeng looked at Dong Wenquan. “Then, what are the Free Citizens Alliance’s conditions for supporting you? They likely won’t support you unconditionally, will they?”

Representative Wang nodded with a smile. “Exactly. We need to support two of their representatives for the council. They’ve agreed we can nominate both Representative Dong and you, Representative Wei, to enter.”

Du Jiahe smiled. “So, our alliance would govern with three seats for the Free Citizens Alliance and two for us.”

If the two parties united, they would indeed have the numbers to form a governing alliance.

Then, Wang Zili raised his hand. “Everyone, I’m new here, but unless I’m required to vote for Representative Lu Qianxing, I won’t support anyone’s election!”

Dressed in fisherman’s garb, he wore a simple look on his face, as though the words “Lu Qianxing is my boss” were inscribed on his forehead.

“I will also only support Representative Lu Qianxing!” Another representative raised her hand. This was Zhang Jing, the party’s only female representative, over forty, recommended by Qing Lao. She had taken over Qing Lao’s place within the party.

Wei Baozeng’s original constituency was where she ran her campaign.

In Beiguan, she was one of only two female representatives. The other, Gao Wang, was there primarily due to her husband’s influence, while Zhang Jing’s election leaned somewhat on the women’s rights movement—Beiguan needed a female representative.

“I’ll also only support Representative Lu Qianxing!” This raised hand belonged to Representative Zhao, an experienced party member in his fifties from an outer district.

“Me as well.” Another representative raised his hand. He was a protégé of Qing Lao’s, surnamed Wang.

Meng Dezhu hesitated briefly, then raised his hand. “I’ll do the same.”

Meng Dezhu was among the first politicians Lu Ming met when he entered this circle.

Wei Baozeng smiled. “I’m supporting Qianxing’s entry into the City Council as well.”

The atmosphere grew tense.

Stating “only supporting Representative Lu Qianxing for the City Council” was fundamentally different from simply favoring him as the second candidate while maintaining the alliance. It openly declared an unwavering loyalty to him.

Including the party whip, Wei Baozeng, this stance had six supporters.

Adding Lu Ming made seven.

With only 13 representatives in the party, they were in the absolute majority.

Representatives Dong Wenquan and Wang’s expressions darkened.

Representative Wang forced a smile. “With so many in agreement, why don’t we nominate Representatives Dong Wenquan and Lu Qianxing for the council, right, Baozeng?”

Zhang Jing shot him a look. “Representative Wang, are you even thinking straight? We’re outright rejecting an alliance with the Free Citizens Alliance. Can’t you see that? We stagnated because of people like you in the party. Ever since Representative Lu Qianxing joined us, we’ve become the second-largest party with the potential to lead with an alliance with Bakalo. Are you really deluded enough to believe you and Dong Wenquan have that kind of talent?”

“You—!” Representative Wang shot up from his seat, only to be pulled back down by a colleague, who whispered words of advice in his ear.

There are advantages to a woman’s remarks, no matter how sharp. Those being criticized can still manage to save face.

The door was knocked gently, and someone entered to hand Du Jiahe another note.

Du Jiahe looked at it and was momentarily stunned, then smiled. “Well, it seems we can end the debate. News just came from the Sunflower Party that their entire delegation will support Qianxing’s council bid.”

Everyone froze; combined with the Justice Party and the Grand Duke Party, they now had a majority.

However, the Sunflower Party was notoriously independent, rarely allying with anyone, so no one expected any such deal.

Wei Baozeng’s eyes widened. “Could we then form a three-party coalition, nominating all four council seats?”

Du Jiahe smiled wryly. “Not necessarily; it’s the Sunflower Party after all. They’ll probably insist on nominating their own for the remaining seats.”

Wei Baozeng sighed. It did sound like typical Sunflower Party behavior.

“Qianxing, it seems you’ve done your homework on the Sunflower Party,” Du Jiahe said, smiling at Lu Ming.

Lu Ming was deeply puzzled. He hadn’t even met anyone from the Sunflower Party.

Keeping a calm face, he simply smiled without comment.

“How about this…” Du Jiahe mused, “we propose four council members: Qianxing, Justice Party Leader Gao Wangling, Sunflower Party Leader Sun Xiangyang, and finally Dong Wenquan.” He looked at Dong Wenquan. “However, Dong, make it clear to the Free Citizens Alliance that we won’t support any of their candidates. They can decide on their own whether to support you or not, but we won’t break our word.”

Dong Wenquan’s face darkened, but he nodded silently.

…

In December of the Empire’s 950th year, Beiguan’s newly-elected council held its first session and passed the Municipal Council Reform Act by 35 votes to 22.

This formally reduced the council from seven members to five.

In the ensuing election, the five council members elected were: Chief Councilor Dale Bakalo, Grand Duke Party’s Lu Qianxing, Justice Party Leader Gao Wangling, Grand Duke Party’s Dong Wenquan, and Free Citizens Alliance’s Sherlock.

Rumor had it that Dong Wenquan had deceived Dale Bakalo to secure a council position. However, the true details were known only to insiders.

In Donghai, nearly every newspaper was focused on Lu Qianxing, the newly elected council member or deputy mayor.

At just nineteen, he was making history as the youngest council member. But even more, the title of deputy mayor at his age was extraordinary.

With a population exceeding half a million, Beiguan was one of the Empire’s most significant cities, comparable to provincial capitals. A nineteen-year-old deputy mayor for such a large economic hub was almost excessive.

Newspapers from other provinces published large front-page photos of this young deputy mayor.

But the editorials were largely critical.

This deputy mayor’s campaign funds had reached a million, an easy public record.

Clearly, he represented a hidden wealthy family, his election highlighting the Empire’s stark economic divides.

Many editorials called for fair elections, criticizing the influence of money in politics. The escalating cost of running for office had become an alarming trend—a tragic indication of democracy’s failure. Urgent measures, they argued, were needed.

…

In the luxury car, Lu Ming slowly read the “World Daily” editorial lambasting the “Lu Qianxing phenomenon.”

Shaking his head, he crumpled the paper and tossed it in the trash. Media was often a joke on issues tacitly approved by those in power.

Across from him sat Murong Xue, in a bright red suit. She was now his chief administrative officer.

Lu Ming’s office had a staff of dozens, handling both “Lu Qianxing’s office” and the “Deputy Mayor’s office,” split into teams like Team Two for council business and Team Three for city governance.

Listening to Murong Xue’s report in the car, Lu Ming shook his head.

From start to finish, he had no idea why all ten Sunflower Party representatives had voted for him for the council.

He had tried to arrange a meeting with Sunflower Party Leader Sun Xiangyang, only to be repeatedly refused.

Murong Xue frowned thoughtfully, hesitating before speaking. “Boss, maybe it’s because of your relentless pursuit of justice for the murdered Zhongzhou people and your evident pride in your Zhongzhou heritage.”

“The Sunflower Party may have nominated you, but they’re likely cautious. If your values differ, meeting might be counterproductive.”

Lu Ming chuckled, pleased to see Murong Xue’s growing insight, which matched his own thoughts almost perfectly.