Late at night, Ma Wei took out the key and opened the door of the grocery store.
I haven't been back for nearly a month, and the grocery store is already covered with dust. All the furnishings are just as they were when I left, so quiet that you can hear a pin drop.
Gulu...
Gulu...
An invisible tentacle rested on Ma Wei's shoulder, wrapped around his body, and lifted him up, feeling bursts of joy.
"Muir, we're back."
Muir has been following orders and guarding the grocery store. It is so suitable for housekeeping that thieves cannot find it.
"This is your reward."
After patting Muir's tentacles and letting him put him down, Ma Wei took out the iron box from his arms and took out two green melon seeds and threw them to Muir. These green melon seeds were brought by Luo Jin, although they were stained a little.
It drools, but Muir probably won't care about this little problem.
The thrown cucumber seeds disappeared immediately and were eaten by Muir. He immediately followed Ma Wei and others to the storage room.
I activated Siren's Tears and recovered the hidden goods one by one. I counted the quantities and after confirming that they were correct, my last worries disappeared.
"Go to rest early." Ma Wei put down the living statue in his hand and looked at Levin: "Tomorrow is your day to be a noble, so you can't be late."
King Oubli I did things very quickly. It should be said that the church had long been ready to award the Manstein family with titles. Even without this "Paris Potion Agreement", it was only a matter of time before the nobles were awarded.
After all, the Manstein family was an ancient Junker noble half a century ago. Now they have become citizens of the Kingdom of Windsor, and they are an important support that cannot be ignored by the church. They should be restored to their former glory, both emotionally and rationally.
Back in the room, Mawei removed the dust-proof cloth cover from the bed, opened the window to let some air in, and cleaned the dust on the floor. After doing all this, he stood alone in front of the window, staring at the moon in the sky that was obscured by clouds and mist in a daze.
Manstein's identity was borrowed from them.
Six months ago, they went to Risa Village in person, and in front of the tombstone of the previous head of the family, they promised to revitalize the name Manstein. Now, this goal is about to be realized.
"hope everything is fine...."
The next day, Buckingham Palace.
The majestic palace is located in the center of the green garden. Although a corner has collapsed, it still retains its royal style.
The matter of awarding nobles has been communicated to the London nobles, and the upper class people who received the invitation rushed to the palace by car to observe the first secular nobleman to be awarded by the church since the advent of God.
Strictly speaking, the church and the nobility do not belong to the same order. There is a clear difference between the two. However, in the theocratic era, the rights of the church must override the power of the king, and the nobility is no exception. Even in their own territory, they must obey the church.
management.
Putting aside individuals and rising to the level of a certain organization, the church owns the most land, which is not comparable to that of a certain noble. Take the Church of the Three Destinies as an example. Two thousand years ago, they came to Britain, established a church, and developed believers.
After a long period of accumulation, they not only purchased land, but also territory donated by the king and nobles.
In the entire Kingdom of Windsor, about 10% of the land belongs to the church, and most of them are ordinary towns. Major cities such as London, Edinburgh, Oxford, and Birmingham are still in the hands of the king and nobles.
Even so, the church can still draw huge amounts of money from land and various businesses every year to maintain various expenses.
The Church of the Three Goddess of Destiny is very rich, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it is as rich as the country, but it is usually not revealed.
The land that will be awarded to Levin today is the territory of the church. Apparently Umbry I and Rhodes IV reached some kind of agreement. Rhodes IV gave him the title of nobility, but the actual benefits will go to the church's 'accounts'. Who will
Was it Ubli I’s suggestion to reward nobles?
In the palace chapel, Ma Wei, like other nobles, entered the auditorium in advance and took a seat. He was not the one receiving the award, so there was no reason to wait outside the main entrance.
There was a lot of noise in the chapel, and the upper class people who came to watch the ceremony were chatting in low voices. It was not until Rhodes IV, wearing a crown, walked out of the side door and stepped onto the high platform that everyone became quiet again.
Rhodes IV appeared on the front foot, and Ubli I on the back foot walked out from the other side door. His seat was higher than Rhodes IV. They were one behind the other, and at the end were three goddess statues, which meant
The class status of the divine right of kings.
After the king and the pope were all seated, the celebrant took out a scroll, unfolded it, and recited loudly:
"By Lady Hunn, King of Britain and other territories and possessions, Head of the Commonwealth at Windsor, Lord Protector of the Church of the Fates, Lord IV, Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Meriones, Baron of Greenwich, Duke of Lancaster, Isle of Man
Lord, Duke of Normandy, Most Noble Lord of the Order of the Garter, Most Noble Lord of the Order of the Bath..."
The eloquent names and titles were sung loudly. Every time a title was read, the salute officer would pause slightly, as if to let the listeners know the power and dignity of the king.
But in Ma Wei's view, these complicated and gorgeous names are flashy and boring, and they are a bit boring after hearing them too much. No matter how many names Rhodes IV has, they can't compare to the title of Pope in the theocratic era.
This can be seen from the indifferent look on Ubli I's face.
He didn't care at all how long the title behind Rhodes IV was, he just wanted to finish reading it as soon as possible.
After reading for several minutes, the salute officer finally concluded with "Lord of the Knights of the Royal Police Order of Merit".
"The Kingdom of Windsor has always adhered to the principle of rewards based on clear merit. In view of this, we are calling you all to gather together today to witness the honor of those who have made outstanding contributions..."
As the salute officer's voice fell, the guards opened the main door of the chapel. Amidst the solemn music of the ceremony, Levin, wearing a red earl's dress, strode in, walked along the red carpet avenue in the middle of the chapel, and came to the front of Rhodes IV.
, knelt down on one knee and lowered his head.
Rhodes IV stood up, picked up the long sword held by the guard on the soft pillow, patted Levin's shoulders left and right, and said in a deep voice:
"In the name of the King of Britain and other territories and dependencies, I hereby create Felix von Manstein as Count of Beckensfield. In memory of his meritorious services, I canonize him as a Knight of the Order of the Garter and confer him the Order of the Garter. The Empire
Medal of Honor First Class, Royal Medal of Honor...."
"Dad, why did he hit Uncle Felix on the shoulder with his sword?"
In the audience, Yunia, who witnessed this scene, asked curiously: "Is this some kind of etiquette?"
"Well, this is the etiquette for knights."
Mawei said: "The nominal meaning is to slap the honoree on the back with a sword, causing him to 'wake up from a nightmare and strive for a lofty ideal.' It also has the meaning of test and warning, testing whether the honoree is violent.
Keep your ambition in front of me, and warn you that you will encounter more cruel battles on the road to knighthood in the future."
"In addition to this important meaning, it also warns the recipients that they have the ability and authority to punish the other party."
Yunia nodded: "Just let the honoree be your dog!"
As soon as these words came out, the nobles sitting around turned their heads and looked at Yunia, their eyes full of shock, surprise, displeasure and even anger.
Ma Wei laughed, and soon realized that the situation was wrong. He said with a straight face: "You should explain that you are a subject and loyal to the king. You can't call others a dog."
"Oh, I know." Yunia responded nonchalantly, lowered her head and ate the chocolate.
The nobles want to have a fit, but this is a chapel, with the king and the pope on top, and the investiture ceremony is not over yet, so you can't yell, and besides...
Yunia is a little girl, and her gentlemanly demeanor makes it impossible for nobles to argue with a little girl. What's more, she is the daughter of Nicholas von Manstein. She is currently a rising figure in London, and her future is limitless...
forget it.
If you think about it carefully, what they said is right. It's just a matter of being a dog. As long as you are given a lot of meat, you can be a dog's son!
On the stage, Levin had already stood up. The king picked up the medal of the Knights, opened the pin, and put it on Levin's chest himself. At the same time, he said: "From today on, you are a distinguished knight, Earl of Beckensfield."
"This is my honor, Your Majesty."
After the investiture ceremony, Ma Wei and others left the palace. They received an invitation from the second prince and went to Kensington Palace to talk. On the way, Levin kept playing with the medals on his chest, observing and asking: "
Where is Beckensfield?”
"It is a medieval town located in the northwest suburbs of London. It has been connected to the railway." Mavey said: "The town of Beaconsfield was originally the territory of the church, but now it has become your private land."
"Am I a landlord?"
"Yes, but the residents of the town are not your slaves. They are free people living on your land. They pay taxes according to the tax laws you set. Then you pay the kingdom territory tax. The difference in the middle is your income. You can still
Recruit a certain number of soldiers and have the power to govern the territory."
"Recruiting soldiers?"
Levin's eyes lit up: "Sounds pretty good!"
"Of course not bad!" Daniel curled his lips and said: "You are now an earl, or an earl in the suburbs of London. In the Middle Ages, you should be a border earl responsible for guarding the royal capital. Your status is higher than ordinary earls! You are also more respected by the king.
!”
The church should have considered the special characteristics of the Manstein family and needed them to stay in London, so it granted the land in the suburbs of London to Levin.
It is no longer the Middle Ages. The title of Border Earl is no different from that of ordinary nobles. After the unification of the army, the number of soldiers recruited has been limited and can only be used for self-defense within the territory.
Even the power to govern the country must abide by the laws of the kingdom and be supervised by the church. It cannot act recklessly and kill the residents in the territory at will like in the Middle Ages.
However, what Ma Wei values is not the power to govern. What he wants is the tax power of the nobles over the territory. With the tax power, they can let the residents in the territory plant and breed potion materials, and start the potion market to sink.
First shot!
This is much more important than the power to govern...
Kensington Palace.
"Congratulations, Felix, oh no, I should call you Earl of Beckensfield now!"
The second prince and his butler greeted him at the door. He did not attend the investiture ceremony, but he knew in advance what title Levin would be conferred.
"Your Highness is too polite." Levin smiled and said: "You should call me Felix. If you want to call me by title, you are the Prince of Oxford."
"You're right, calling each other by titles is really out of the ordinary, but it's still as comfortable as before."
After experiencing the escape together, the relationship between the few people quickly warmed up. The second prince just teased and joked a few words, then brought Ma Wei and others to the living room and brought up the business: "Nicholas, the general election every five years is about to happen.
Let’s start, I’ve submitted your name, but I don’t know yet which district you want to run for.”
The elections in the Kingdom of Windsor are based on the "small constituency system". Each constituency elects one member to become a member of the House of Commons. There are a total of 650 constituencies with 650 quotas.
Although there are many places, a candidate can only choose one constituency. For example, the grocery store is in the Newham district of East London. There is a quota in Newham district. If Mavey runs for the Newham district, it means that he will not be able to participate.
There are elections in other districts.
At the end of each general election, the leader of the party with the most votes automatically becomes the new prime minister and gains the power to form a cabinet. The current prime minister of the Kingdom, Winston Churchill, is a conservative, and the conservative party supports Prince Charles.
At the beginning of the new general election, the second prince certainly wants the Liberal Party that supports him to form a cabinet and strengthen its power. However, the Conservative Party has more seats in the House of Commons than the Liberal Party. Judging from the situation alone, the next prime minister will be Vincenzo.
Don Churchill.
"Which districts are the most competitive?" Mawe asked.
"Of course, the most intense competition is between the Conservative and Liberal constituencies, such as the London constituencies of Enfield, Ealing, etc." The second prince thought: "We have two options. One is to go to the constituencies of the Conservative Party or other parties.
Compete directly with them. Secondly, if you come from a constituency of the Liberal Party, I will control it internally and ask other members to give up their positions to you."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "The second choice is the safest, and it can guarantee that Nicholas you will become a member of Parliament."
From the second prince's expression, Ma Wei could tell that he didn't particularly want to give up a seat. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but he felt that with Ma Wei's current influence, he could compete with the Conservative Party, defeat them, and win a constituency.
If Ma Wei didn't want to compete and wanted to play it safe, the second prince wouldn't say anything. Anyway, the seat was still theirs, it was just a different person.
To compete or not to compete, Ma Wei has already made a plan: "Your Highness, I want to run for Lambeth District Councilor."
“Lambeth…”
The second prince looked serious and said: "The Lambeth district in London has always been a Conservative constituency. The people there will vote for Conservative MPs. It is not a good choice because you have to compete directly with the Conservative Party... Can I ask
Excuse me, why did you choose Enfield?"
"Unlike West London and East London, South London is the most developed industry and commerce, and most of the people living there are businessmen, elites and skilled workers. There, I can completely let go and use Manstein's potion.
The company can get the most votes for itself."
"But the situation there is very complicated. Businessmen, social elites and skilled workers all have different choices. Several forces such as the Labor Party, the National Party and the Conservative Party are intertwined. The Conservative Party is the most suitable for them, and the Liberal Party's policy...
." The second prince licked his lips: "It is difficult to get large-scale support there, they don't like reform."
"They don't like reform because they don't have the need to carry out reform."
Ma Wei said calmly: "For businessmen, social elites and skilled workers, what is available is the best. Risky reform may cause them to lose their current social status and quality of life, so they choose to fight for themselves.
Favorable conditions for Labor and the Conservatives."
"The Liberal Party is not popular in South London, but that does not mean it is uncompetitive. As long as they realize that reform can bring them huge benefits, they will naturally choose the Liberal Party."
The second prince nodded: "What are you going to do?"
"Felix is now an earl noble and has his own territory. We should use the territory as the core. The United Church's upcoming release of potion control will stimulate the people's desire to compete."
Ma Wei smiled and said: "This is a big cake. Even if the main market is still under the control of the church, a little bit of soup is enough to satisfy the appetite of many people..."
