Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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Ronan's arrival also brought more advanced and efficient printing technology.

Admittedly, printing was invented by Seres, and movable type printing existed hundreds of years ago. However, Seres' movable type printing was not widely used, and woodblock printing was still the most common method.

Seres has made slow progress in the last hundred years, while the West has made rapid progress.

After giving the information to Ronan, Guo Hanlu did not leave immediately.

"What's up?" Ronan asked.

"I have a question to ask," Guo Hanlu said softly.

"Let's go somewhere else," Ronan said, getting up and going outside.

Leaving his office, Ronan led Guo Hanlu to a miniature garden designed by Ambrina, which incorporated Western style elements.

At this moment, Ambriina was playing with a child, who was Guo Hanlu's six-year-old daughter, Guo Shiliu.

Guo Shiliu had no intention of coming over to greet his mother; he was as mischievous as a little boy, completely absorbed in his play.

Upon arriving at the pavilion, Ronan gestured for them to enter.

Guo Hanlu was dressed very simply at this time. She wore a white cross-collar narrow-sleeved Hanfu top with light pink embroidery that was not easily visible. She wore a high-waisted light pink long skirt with a silk belt around her waist. The long skirt was very plain, without any patterns or decorations. The skirt was also a bit narrow and high, revealing her ankles and a small section of her calves, which could be said to be extremely irregular.

But how should I put it? There are even more impolite things in Jiangnan. Women there dare to wear skirts that are even shorter than this, which even foreigners admire.

Looking at Guo Hanlu's slender legs encased in white stockings beneath her skirt, and the white stockings covering part of her insteps in her low-heeled white canvas shoes.

Ronan was truly grateful that Seris was living in an era of moral decay and social upheaval.

Taking a deep breath, Ronan reluctantly sat down. There was a stone table between the seats, so he couldn't see Guo Hanlu's legs when he sat down, and Guo Hanlu's chest seemed to be nonexistent.

"Speak, what's the problem?" Ronan said lazily.

"I don't understand why no one has spoken out about something as inevitable as a reorganization that involves personnel changes."

Guo Hanlu asked.

What she really wanted to ask was how Ronan, a foreigner, managed to control this group of people without being united against them.

Before answering your question, let me ask one first: why are lower and middle-ranking officials not afraid of their superiors?

Instead of answering immediately, Ronan asked a question.

"Huh?" Guo Hanlu found it absurd at first. Who wouldn't be afraid of their superiors? But then she realized that they really weren't afraid. Whether in the central government or at the local level, there were countless people who were indifferent to their superiors' demands, and some even dared to sideline them. This really meant they weren't afraid at all.

"Why is that?" Guo Hanlu asked.

"Because superiors can only punish them, but cannot reward them. Officials are not dogs, but horses. Horses are not truly afraid of those who only know how to whip them. If they get impatient, they will kick up their heels. They will only submit to those who can feed them good food and will be afraid that they will not get good food."

"However, in the current court system of Seris, it can be said that there is no legitimate way to provide material rewards to lower-ranking officials."

"But it's different here. Everything is full of energy. If you do well, you can get promoted, get better benefits, and get housing. Basically, every branch and department of the committee has its own slush fund, and every junior official has the right to know about it. Although higher-level officials can still take a considerable portion, they still have to give up most of it as a reward for their future."

“I, as a foreigner, am the guarantee of this vitality. If I am gone, then power will be concentrated in the top again, which is something many lower-level officials do not want to see.”

"Going back to the original question, why didn't anyone unite against me? Because if someone did, the lower-level officials would unite and demand that I suppress them. Ultimately, what supports this system is not a few high-ranking officials, but the majority of lower-level officials."

Luo Nan explained, answering Guo Hanlu's question.

"Are you planning to keep doing this forever?" Guo Hanlu asked again.

Ronan continued leisurely, “For the sake of development, this is a necessary means. In fact, the only drawback is that middle-level officials have more power, the central government has lost its power to make decisions, and it has become more difficult for provincial officials to get things done.”

"Here's a side note: the Seres have a problem. Whenever there's a problem, they say the court is interfering too much and should be given more autonomy. But if you ask them how to solve the problem, they'll say that the court needs to introduce a major policy to enforce it."

"That's ridiculous, isn't it?"

Ronan's writing here is full of satire of the numerous political commentators from Seres who were out of power.

Guo Hanlu now fully realized Ronan's level of skill in manipulating power.

He sighed, then explained his true purpose: "I want to join the Secretariat."

Ronan showed no surprise.

Guo Hanlu never expected Ronan to react this way.

Ronan couldn't help but laugh. "Ha, your father already told me. You've been an official before, you can't be unaware of this kind of thing, can you? Theoretically, you're just a bank employee now. To be promoted to the secretariat, you need to go through a special process. The committee isn't my personal fiefdom; there are procedures to follow. Naturally, they have to get everything sorted out for you in advance. Otherwise, it would have to be delayed until after the meeting. If you want to get in then, you'll have to pass an exam. According to your father, your exam performance is pretty bad."

Guo Hanlu and Lu Jianling were both born into martial arts families and both had considerable talent in cultivation. However, Lu Jianling was a top student and a proper female scholar who earned her government job through her own abilities. She did not take a prestigious position in the civil service because she wanted to have time to stay at home and raise her children. Guo Hanlu was far inferior in this regard.

In another world, Lu Jianling is a proper second-class official, while Guo Hanlu is a "student of the Imperial Academy" who got a minor official position through her father's connections.

"Exams can't determine your level," Guo Hanlu said, somewhat annoyed.

“You still have a long way to go, but for your father’s sake, I’ll take good care of you,” Ronan said. He was very good at mentoring people.

"Didn't the old man do nothing?" Guo Hanlu asked, puzzled.

“No, your father is a very important figure now; he’s a double agent,” Ronan said bluntly.

Chapter 1009 The office environment is terrible, and the secretaries are all "talented"—let's go first.

Located in the heart of Guangzhou, the three-story building, named Fuzhenglou, was completed in six months and situated in a garden. It served as the office for the committee's leaders and secretaries.

The place wasn't exactly simple, and it occupied a large area, but it was far from luxurious. There was no clear space around it either; just a few hundred meters away were residential houses and a market. It didn't have the layout that a leader's office should have.

There are three reasons for this setup. First, it's temporary; after all, it's unlikely to be the capital in Guangzhou in the future, so saving money is important. Second, it serves as a demonstration, so others won't feel comfortable making their offices too luxurious. Third, Ronan wanted this place to be neither luxurious nor grand enough, so that Zhao Jun, a young man who enjoys luxury, wouldn't want to be in such a place.

Not coming? Ronan would love for him not to come.

Ronan brought Guo Hanlu here, firstly to have her sign and confirm the documents herself, and then stamp them to complete her onboarding process, and secondly to let her get to know her colleagues with whom she would be working for a long time to come.

There were five people in front of Guo Hanlu: four men and one woman.

Of course, the secretariat, which had not yet been reorganized, had more than just these five people. After Ronan established the new structure, agriculture developed rapidly, industry began to take shape, and commerce changed every day. In addition, it also had to bear all the logistical tasks for foreign operations. The number of government affairs to be handled in Guangdong and the difficulty of execution were constantly increasing. In order to maintain the operation of this system, the secretariat became a large department with more than fifty people, not including those who did odd jobs.

More than twenty of them were veterans who had worked with Ronan in Foshan before, and some of them had already been given talent.

Although their talents are limited, they have certainly worked hard, haven't they?

Those who are talented and capable should certainly be rewarded, as should those who are willing to invest a lot of time and energy.

This is similar to Ronan classifying senior technicians and hardworking workers in the same category and having them eat in the same canteen. There are "tools" who can play a key role, and those "oxen and horses" who are willing to contribute must also be encouraged.

The rest were mostly people planted by other committee members. They were there to assist Ronan in his work, to contact other departments, but also to learn from him and act as informants.

If no one else can master the new system Ronan has built, what else can they do but do this?

However, these people will eventually distance themselves from their original backers, or even turn against them. The reason is simple: they have their own "backers" now.

The five people in front of Guo Hanlu were newcomers, locals from Guangdong whom Luo Nan had recently recruited.

"This is Lin Zhaoyi," Ronan began to introduce to Guo Hanlu, "a cousin of General Lin Wenhua."

Comrade Xiaolin is a filial son.

The Lin family was the most powerful clan in Guangdong in Luo Nan's eyes. In those days, wealthy and powerful families ranged from a few hundred to over a thousand members, and the Lin family belonged to the latter. The Lin family owned land, but not much. Their livelihood depended on two main sources: sugarcane cultivation and sugar production, and foreign trade. In addition to these two, many members of the Lin family held positions in the navy. Although there was only one high-ranking officer, Lin Wenhua, there was a group of lower-ranking officers with the surname Lin.

Like other wealthy and powerful families, the competition within the Lin family is both fair and brutal.

The fairness lies in the fact that, regardless of whether there is a direct line or a collateral branch, the younger generation receives the same education in the same school. The cruelty lies in the fact that only those with extraordinary talents are qualified to fight for the help of family resources, while those without talents can only be high-ranking servants, not even the current patriarch's own son.

Lin Zhaoyi is not the biological son of the current clan chief, but he is practically the biological son of the next clan chief.

He should still be the favored youngest son.

Actually, his father could still have more children, but it would be illegal to do so. The laws of Seris do not allow superhumans to keep "drawing lots," and the severity of the crime of having more children than allowed is not much different from the unforgivable crime of rebellion.

However, without extraordinary talent, his character and abilities are meaningless.

Moreover, he was considered a talented but immoral person who often said things that disrespected his elders.

However, all of this changed after he joined the Reading Club and stood out from the crowd. Ronan gave him talent, and within six months, he advanced to the first rank, at the young age of nineteen.

“This is Chen Qingjun…” Ronan continued his introduction.

Chen Qingjun's background was similar to Lin Zhaoyi's, but they were different people. He was originally a very easy-going, optimistic, and even somewhat carefree person. He had even started to act as a bag carrier for the real "young master". However, he was actually a very ambitious person with a strong gambling instinct. After learning about the Gongjin Reading Club, he did not hesitate to leave his home, which was a gamble.

"This is Huang Jun..."

Huang Jun's situation was different. At twenty-eight, he had been on the streets for over a decade and had become the head of a small gang. He wasn't a member of the Reading Club, but rather someone Ronan noticed after the committee was established.

"This is Liang Si..."

Liang Si is older than Huang Jun, currently thirty-one years old. Judging from his name, you can tell he comes from a humble background, which is indeed the case. His great-grandfather, grandfather, and father were all woodcutters. Three generations of hard work finally enabled him to become a blacksmith worker. Due to his own diligence and hard work, at the age of twenty-seven, he successfully became the assistant to the factory's accountant. If nothing unexpected happens, he will be able to work until he is forty years old, let his son become a blacksmith worker, and then get out of there himself.

Of course, something unexpected happened. When Ronan recruited workers for military training, he joined in. Later, Lu Jianling took over the training and thought he was good, one of the few smart ones among a bunch of idiots, so he put him on the list. Later, he did not choose to join the army, but entered the logistics department. Because he did a good job, Ronan gave him talent and pulled him into the secretariat.

In reality, he lacked ability and temperament, possessing only second-rate accounting skills and a bit of cleverness, and was filled with inferiority complex at heart. However, his background was a huge advantage. Ronan's team needed someone with such a humble background. Ronan even forbade him to mention that he was a steelworker, but only that his father was a woodcutter.

This is to make Ronan's side appear unconventional enough.

“She is Yin Xingye…” Ronan introduced the only girl among the five.

She is one of Isabelle's adopted daughters, and is considered one of the older ones, currently seventeen years old.

She's fairly pretty, unlike many local Cantonese people with flat faces, a flat nose, and a big nose. She's just a bit dark-skinned, with a wheatish complexion, but she has a pretty good figure.

Originally, she was just an extra, because Isabel usually adopted children who were either six or seven years old and still developing, or around ten years old who would be useful after a few years of raising them. She was already fifteen when she was adopted, and she was only adopted because of her younger sister who had innate talent.

Unexpectedly, she, who was originally only literate, learned everything quickly and made rapid progress in just two years.

"You guys chat and have a meal together, I'll have to excuse myself." After introducing everyone, Ronan took his leave. It was already a waste of his time to personally bring Guo Hanlu to complete the formalities.

Chapter 1010 Reorganization Meeting, Focusing on the Procuratorate, the Cunning Luo Gouzi

The twentieth day of the first lunar month.

The reorganization meeting was held, and all the official members of the committee gathered.

The topic for this discussion is establishing the organizational structure; personnel issues will not be discussed at this time.

A six-person secretariat, including Guo Hanlu's secretary, distributed documents and materials to the various committee members.

At the very top is the Chairman, and the Secretariat assists the Chairman in carrying out his work.

Below the chairman are the three major bodies: the Development Committee, the Political Committee, and the Military Committee. These three bodies have numerous branches, and the sub-branches under those branches are countless.

Of course, the committee members don't care about the lower-level branches, since they're unlikely to become those kinds of "junior leaders."

Of the three committees, the Development Committee was a new entity, but it wasn't entirely unfamiliar to most people.

This is a place responsible for planning, approving, and supervising various economic policies; simply put, it is a powerful department that controls agriculture, industry, and commerce.

The Political Council can be essentially seen as a subdivided version of the imperial court, an extremely large institution. It can be said that all the departments that were originally part of the Seris court can be found here, as well as those that were not originally part of the imperial court or whose authority was vague and were classified into a larger department.

He has gathered all kinds of power in one person, that is...

The Military Commission, well, it's simple and doesn't need much explanation. It's for the separation of military and political power. However, this separation means that the military is not allowed to interfere in politics, but politics can interfere in military affairs.

Besides the three committees, there is another special body directly under the chairman: the prosecutor's office.

After taking a closer look at the powers of the procuratorate, a group of committee members became somewhat displeased.

They don't care at all about case investigations or prosecutions, but they are uncomfortable when this department has the power to investigate and monitor officials.

"I don't think it's necessary. I see that there are departments under the Political Committee that exercise similar powers. Wouldn't that lead to confusion about responsibilities and redundant officials? If we really need such an institution, why not just merge them? What do you all think?"

The speaker was Xu Tianci, the former provincial judge, who remained in charge of the judiciary after the committee was established.

Of course, oversight is necessary, and he cannot oppose that. But it is only reasonable for officials to oversee other officials. The selection and appointment mechanism for the procuratorate is simply too unreasonable.

“Committee Member Xu, I have a different opinion on the issue of redundant officials and staff.” Ronan spoke up, “Prosecutors are not officials at all. Apart from a few internal civilian leaders and senior leaders, the others have no official positions, no fixed posts and corresponding salaries, only subsidies and bonuses. You can even think of them as a hired third-party investigation agency, except that the commissions are paid from the government budget. How can this be considered as overlapping powers and redundant officials and staff?”

They only dare to criticize people because they are not officials.

If someone is an official, they will inevitably be influenced by administrative power, that is, the government. But Ronan did it this way, linking wealth and future prospects to performance, making it like a business. The prosecutors will inevitably become a bunch of mad dogs. The key is that the difficulty for the government to seduce and influence these mad dogs increases dramatically.

Because if one person wants to influence another, it can only be through rewards and punishments. If they have neither the means to reward nor punish the other party, they can only influence the specific individual at most, and cannot gradually and eventually gain complete control over the other party's entire department.

People can be replaced at any time, and the less formally employed someone is, the easier it is to replace them.

“I think this is a bit too much. Prosecutors are human too. How can they not be given official positions? I suggest that they should be given official positions,” Wang Sizheng said. It was one thing for him to be on friendly terms with Luo Nan, but it was another matter to consider the supervisory power, which affected his own authority.

Since Xu Tianci's plan is untenable, then let him take the lead.

Unable to influence them? Then turn them into officials.

Wang Sizheng didn't believe that if those people didn't want to be officials, Luo Nan couldn't just block them from becoming officials, could he?

Wang Sizheng made this statement.

Most of the people present cast approving glances; Old Wang's move was indeed precise.

Only Zhao Jun looked somewhat grim. Although he knew that he probably couldn't really control the procuratorate, he could at least use it to suppress other forces. If it worked, he wouldn't benefit much, but if it didn't, he would suffer a loss.

Ronan's lips curled up slightly; he had been waiting for these words.