Chapter 1854: Dingcheng’s Election, Part Two

Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

The election in Dingcheng was officially held. The tricks that politicians used were quite similar to celebrities. They did not really have a lot of admirers, so they had to hire a group of people to pretend to be their supporters with huge banners and signs, resulting in massive traffic congestion for the pedestrians and vehicles on the roads. It felt like they were being supported by the whole world.

Councilman Nan was a prime example. It did not matter if the people were not supporting him. It did not cost him much to hire a group of people to pretend to be his supporters. When he walked up the stairs to the Rock Sword Pagoda, he did not forget to smile humbly at the crowd like a celebrity walking on a red carpet, telling the crowd not to cheer so much for him.

“Who’s that guy?”

“Councilman Nan, he has the biggest chance to be elected as the Great Councilman of the city. He used to manage a few other cities, too. The officials were very efficient under his care, and he had contributed a lot for the cities too. I think the cities under his care never had any huge problems,” someone spoke up.

“Oh, that’s impressive. The city might blossom if he’s managing it!”

“Of course, let’s earn a fortune together with him!”

“He’s the reason I moved to this city!” a vendor called out.

“Let’s give Councilman Nan our support. We just have to follow his guidance!”

Councilman Nan was walking up the stairs slowly, tidying his collar. He could hear the crowd discussing him with his outstanding hearing.

Being a Councilman was not tough. He just needed to make some public appearances and organize some events, and had to be willing to spend money on talks and donations. Many people might not know him, but a good word would easily get the attention of busybodies. He just needed to give these people some benefits at the right time, and they would turn into his loyal supporters. A person’s intelligence would not necessarily grow with their age. The most important thing about their country’s law was that every citizen over the age of eighteen was given the right to vote, and yet, the politicians were tricking their votes out of them, just like they were tricking kids into taking their candies.

Councilman Nan was amused when he recalled what happened in Wanggui Town.

The people in Wanggui Town were the ones who had appointed him as the person-in-charge. They happily took the candies he gave them without caring about what would happen in the future. He was not to be blamed for the incident. It was the people’s fault for not treating their votes seriously. They only cared about the temporary sweetness of the candies before them like kids. They had only themselves to blame when something went wrong later on!

Today was the final day of the lockdown in Wanggui Town. The military forces that Dan Yong dispatched should have settled everything on his behalf. He no longer had to worry that the past would bother him again.

He looked up at the towering structure again, before glancing back at the Elemental Capital that was soon going to blossom rapidly despite its current simple appearance. He could not help but grin. It had been over ten years since he was in such a great mood. Even though it was supposed to be an election, it was more of a prize ceremony for him. The outcome was already decided.

“The weather is nice today, it’s a perfect day for me to take office,” Councilman Nan said in a mocking tone, glancing at Councilman Ming Jian, who was walking up the stairs beside him.

Councilman Ming Jian was only in his thirties. He was a very talented Councilman who had earned a lot of support from civilians recently. Ming Jian was obviously the best candidate in the election. Even Councilman Nan believed Ming Jian would be able to use his talents to turn the Elemental Capital into a true capital city in the center of their country. It would become the sturdiest shield in the east with the brilliance of a sword!

Unfortunately, Councilman Ming Jian was just too young. How could he possibly win the election when Councilman Nan was abusing the connections he had accumulated for more than ten years?

“It’s a tragedy for the city that an old rat like you has set eyes on it,” Ming Jian harrumphed coldly. He went up the stairs with an obvious grudge.

“You still have much to learn! For example, not to show your true emotions on your face. I’ve lost so many elections, but did you ever see me pulling a long face? I was able to give the winners great applause most of the time!” Councilman Nan was even more delighted when he saw Councilman Ming Jian’s reaction.

He had lost many elections, but everything was worth it if he could win this one!

—

They went into the building and took the lift to the floor of the meeting room.

The meeting room was extremely spacious, and the windows were made of reinforced glass. They were able to see the whole city from the room with its three hundred and sixty degrees view.

“Commander Xie, you look the same still… oh, you must be Captain Lu. We had a pleasant chat before. I’m really impressed by your Brown Rock Mages,” Councilman Nan greeted everyone as soon as he took his seat. However, Commander Xie simply ignored Councilman Nan, as if he was not too fond of the man.

Ming Jian took his seat with a long face. He was not in the mood to greet the others. He was seriously disgusted by Councilman Nan’s attitude. It was like the man was already prepared to deliver his winning speech.

“Oh, young man, there’s no need to give me the fruits. You can give them to Commander Xie instead. He’s the reason why the city is able to come so far,” Councilman Nan said with a smile when he saw a young waiter in plain clothes.

As a Councilman, he could not afford to yell orders at people, even if the person was only a waiter. That way, the people would be overwhelmed by his humility. They might even be grateful toward him. Winning over people could not be any easier.

“Idiot, those are mine! Who said I’m giving them away?” The young man took a seat that was a level higher than Councilman Nan. He placed the plate of fruits on the table and feasted on them without caring about his image.

Councilman Nan was dumbfounded.

Where did this young man come from? Was he trying to ruin his career?

“Brother, that seat belongs to a Councilman. I know you might be in a bad mood, but you shouldn’t be so reckless.” Councilman Nan was long used to pretending to be on good terms with everyone, and spoke gently to the younger man.

“I’m not supposed to sit here?” The young man gave Xie Qinghua a puzzled look.

“Mo Fan, that seat isn’t yours,” Xie Qinghua chided him with a smile. “Come over here, the main seat is yours.”

“Oh, I was wondering why I was sitting with this boring man.” Mo Fan stood up and brought the plate of fruit to the seat designated for even higher authorities. He plopped down into the chair and casually tossed an apple into Xie Qinghua’s hands.