Chapter 195: The Conspiracy on the Feiyun

Qian Shuiting said, “I won’t comment on the new political structure created by the assembly. It’s nothing more than a miniature Saturn community. The so-called Nine Executive Committee Members are just a carbon copy of the Nine Elders. On the surface, it claims to be a separation of the three powers, but judicial and legislative powers still fall into the hands of the executive branch. As for the Senate, to put it bluntly, it’s the supreme authority in name only, another rubber-stamp body that passes everything unanimously.”

“There are plenty of detailed problems inside,” Zhou Weisen coughed. “The standing committee system of the Senate has too many qualification restrictions. An executive committee member can serve for eight consecutive years, take one term off, and then continue to serve. But a senator has to serve for one year and then wait for three. They also have to be in Lingao often, can’t travel too much, and can’t be too busy. If you factor in the executive committee members, department heads, and so on, and then remove those who are unwilling to participate in politics or are friends and family of the ruling faction, how much restraint can there be on those in power?”

Qian Shuixie agreed, “It’s called separation of the three powers, but the Chief Justice of the Arbitration Tribunal and the Speaker of the Senate both belong to the Executive Committee, with no independence to speak of. It’s all under the control of the Executive Committee. These people on the Executive Committee also act as judges. Who can control them?”

“The Dugu Qiuqiu incident is a typical example,” Zheng Shangjie said. “The Dugu case was so serious, it’s frightening to think about. An ordinary elder mobilized armed forces. If they had really entered the city, those people inside would have suffered greatly. Yet, the trial just passed like that. The manipulation behind the scenes is obvious!”

“The Dugu incident, to put it bluntly, was driven by political struggle,” Qian Shuiting said. “I’ve read Ji Xin’s materials. The truth of the matter is no longer important. The key is that this trend is very bad. Several executive committee members are already openly playing power games. If this continues, so-called politics will become a game for the current administrative cadres. They will use their administrative resources to continuously consolidate their power, and eventually, we ordinary elders will be reduced to mere bystanders.”

“This executive committee system must be abolished,” Zheng Shangjie said.

“Not now,” Qian Shuixie waved his hand. “The executive committee system was just established by the general assembly. It hasn’t shown any obvious flaws yet. It’s all about moving from one victory to another. Proposing to abolish it now won’t be taken seriously. We might even ‘isolate ourselves from the people’.”

“Sigh—” Everyone except Miss Mendoza sighed. Although the discussion was in English, many of the “jargon” terms were beyond her comprehension. So far, all Miss Mendoza understood was that the people who had tricked her into coming here seemed to be dissatisfied with the transmigrator’s political system.

“I think we need to have our own guns to feel secure,” Zhou Weisen said. “Fortunately, Lin Chuanqing proposed the right to bear arms this time, and it was finally added to the basic rights of the transmigrators. Otherwise, I would have insisted on adding this right to the constitution no matter what!”

“This shows the importance of a common background,” Qian Shuiting nodded. “Although we hope to integrate, on many issues—especially in terms of ideology—there are still significant differences between us sea turtles and those from the mainland.”

“We have guns now,” Qian Shuixie said, “but who knows what it will be like in a few years. Once the situation stabilizes, won’t they just find an excuse to confiscate them? Not to mention, all the industry is under the administrative system. If they cut off the ammunition supply, your machine gun is useless.”

“So it’s not enough,” Zhou Weisen said. “I think we can learn a little from the British system and implement a vassalage or patronage system in the army. Native officers could be attached to a certain elder, so each elder would effectively control a portion of the native military forces…”

“Impossible. Your proposal would be shot down immediately,” Qian Shuiting shook his head. “And they could easily suppress it with a simple accusation of ‘turning back the clock of history’.”

Zhou Weisen said, “Then let every transmigrator participate in regular military training as a reserve officer, and give each of us some militia reservists. If someone tries to use the army to suppress us, we’ll fight them with our men.”

“That would be chaos!” Ai Beibei said with concern. “I don’t think this idea of everyone having a private army is right. It could easily become a tool for everyone to PK each other. Can you guarantee that every elder’s controlled armed force will only be used to protect their legitimate rights? What if someone wants to use this force to stage a coup? Strengthening control over the army is necessary, but this kind of private army setup is definitely not a good thing. In the long run, the consequences will be even greater.”

Qian Shuiting thought for a moment and said, “It’s mainly a matter of degree. I always feel that a few hundred militiamen, even with equipment, can’t beat a well-organized native army. So it’s too difficult to rely on a few militiamen to rebel. But if things get desperate, it can increase the operational cost of military suppression and reduce the likelihood of it happening. We can limit the quantity and quality of these temporary private armies that each person controls…”

“If they can’t resist at all, what’s the use of elders having such private armies except for PK-ing each other? A couple hundred militiamen with Minie rifles… the regular army just needs to bring up some cannons and fire a few shots. How does that increase the cost?” Ai Beibei still opposed her husband’s proposal. “Let’s not end up like the Polish Republic! The Senate becomes a mere decoration, and the nobles do whatever they want, leading to fragmentation. We are still a group, after all!”

After some thought, they agreed. Managing and controlling private armies was a very complex matter. Even if the Senate passed it, the dissatisfied administrative system had a thousand ways to counterattack. The elders were of varying levels of competence and moral character. If a few elders’ private armies caused some trouble or engaged in real-life PK a couple of times, the mud would be slung. Not only would the private army system be untenable, but the proponents might even be disgraced.

Ai Beibei said, “I think you guys are being a bit extreme and thinking too darkly. This is the founding stage of our state. Didn’t we agree during our discussions? We need to promote political system reform subtly. Now, we ourselves are proposing a private army system that extremely protects individual interests. It’s too radical.”

After some consideration, Zhou Weisen said, “Sister-in-law is right. We can’t be too hasty with this. Army control should start with strengthening the idea of ‘nationalization’—this is something all elders agree on. With that big hat on, no one would dare to object.”

“We should contribute to the details of army nationalization. How to nationalize it, how to limit personal influence on the army, the deployment and use of the army, arms control, and so on, all have precedents. If I propose more on these aspects, the chances of passing are high.”

“Our base is too small, not enough votes.” Although Ai Beibei and Zhou Weisen had been elected to the standing committee, looking around the committee and the entire Senate, they realized their base was pitifully small. As a political faction, the North American branch had almost zero influence. Qian Shuiting thought for a long time and said:

“Since no one else is doing this, and we’ve thought of it, we have to do it. Our North American branch has no private goals. We just want to help the group establish or adopt what we believe are more reasonable organizational models, management measures, and laws. Turning the opinions of a minority, even if correct, into the consensus of the majority is a long and arduous process. We must do our best, but we cannot be too detached from reality. We must advance our ideas step by step. We are engaged in politics, and politics is the life of politicians. Everyone must understand: what we want is a reasonable system, but for others, it’s about their political life. This means that this ideological struggle, even if its original intention is constructive, can become very cruel.” Qian Shuiting analyzed with his limited political experience, not realizing he was actually delivering a political manifesto.

The others nodded in agreement. Miss Mendoza’s eyes widened; she sensed a disquieting element in this declaration.

“There is no honesty in politics, so we must be strategic and prepared to deal with the various conspiracies and tricks of the other side, even if they are still our comrades within the same group. As for forming a close-knit clique, we already have one. What we need to do now is to expand our core, our base, our allies, and our sympathizers as much as possible.”

“Our base is too small,” Zhou Weisen said. Strictly speaking, the core of the North American branch consisted of only the few people present.

“That’s why I say we are too detached from the masses,” Qian Shuiting said. “This Feiyun is too comfortable; it’s become our little paradise. Haven’t you noticed that no one ever comes to visit us on the Feiyun?”

“True, but we’ve never invited anyone either. We’re all very busy.”

“This situation should change from now on,” Qian Shuiting said decisively. “We need to go out, invite people in, and make more friends. Also, we can’t appear too special. We shouldn’t keep the Feiyun anymore. We should hand it over as soon as possible and move ashore to live. This boat is too conspicuous, and as long as we live on it, we are even more so—too detached from the collective.”

“I’d really hate to part with it.”

“Yeah, where would I live if we donate the boat?” The women were very reluctant.

“Bathing will be inconvenient. We’ll have to go to the public bathhouse. I’m not used to bathing in public.”

“Should we let Duo Duo sleep in the dormitory?” Ai Beibei was reluctant to part with her child. “The dormitories are all simple prefabs.”

“And what about cooking?” Miss Mendoza suddenly interjected. “I see they all eat in the cafeteria.” These three women were very interested in cooking.

“What about our equipment? We’ll have to find a place to store it. We can’t just keep it in the dormitory,” Qian Shuixie was reluctant to part with the treasures in the bilge.

“Then let’s just cede the right of use. That way, we might be able to use it again someday.”

“Don’t be silly. I don’t like the idea of either defecting or being driven out.”

The proposal to give up the Feiyun was ultimately dropped, but everyone agreed that the Feiyun could be used for other things to expand the influence of the North American group.

“Those few foreigners should have similar views to ours. Although they are elders now, they are on the sidelines within the group. They should be easy to win over. That’s several votes right there,” Qian Shuixie thought. “Sarina and Xue Ziliang are both possible, and also Panpan.”

They began to tally their potential allies. People with experience studying or living abroad were also primary targets for expanding their base.

“I think Lin Chuanqing is possible, and also Chen Sigen. They both like sailing and shooting. They understand the domestic situation and have lived in the United States for a long time. They should be considered our base. Winning them over is more useful than a few foreigners. People are instinctively distrustful of foreigners, and it’s easy to be backstabbed. Foreigners cannot be our core strength, only allies,” Qian Shuiting said. “There are several extreme nationalists among the elders. If we get too close to the foreigners, they will attack us viciously, and it will become a handle against us.”

The silent majority without official positions were their main focus, especially the street activists who had emerged during the Maid Revolution. They needed to be won over. They had faintly formed a force.

“We are not universalists in the broad sense, at least not now, but we can cooperate with the broad universalists. The key is to see what the issue is. Both the far-left and the far-right may be dissatisfied with the current regime. We can strategically ally with them. But we will eventually clash with the extremists as well.”

“We can’t get too close to the extremists,” Zhou Weisen said with a frown. “I’ve roughly observed the elders around me. Most are pragmatists and don’t really like the extremists either.”

“Sister-in-law, hasn’t Du Wen been trying to get you to join the Women’s Federation? I think you should just join her federation,” Qian Shuixie slapped his thigh. “You’re a woman; joining the Women’s Federation is perfectly legitimate. There are dozens of female elders. If they can be united, that’s a huge voting bloc.”

“We must be strategic and only make relatively realistic, individual demands each time.”

They then studied the focus and main principles of their work.

Zhou Weisen said, “If one or more individuals are considered obstacles to our goals, we will try to neutralize their influence. Right now, Ma Jia and his Law Society are the dominant force creating the current situation. We must now engage in a legal struggle with them, control their influence, try to establish an independent judiciary, and try to elect people we consider more credible or our sympathizers as judges to promote judicial independence, objectively taking power away from the Executive Committee and the Arbitration Tribunal.”

Qian Shuiting said, “Master, you’re being too hasty. I don’t think we should do these things at the beginning. The people in the Executive Committee can completely guess what we’re up to. So at the beginning, we can only make small moves to avoid their fierce counterattack. First, we strive to change the rules for the standing committee of senators. Otherwise, one year is too short to have much influence on policy, and then we have to wait three years. There’s no continuity. This point must be resolved as soon as possible.”

Everyone agreed.

“Secondly, at this stage, we won’t do anything substantial—” Qian Shuiting paused, as if organizing his thoughts. “This year, we will use establishing the authority of the Senate as our entry point. In many aspects, we must constantly remind the elders that the Senate is the highest authority. We should use the Senate to make a fuss over many small matters, frequently hold inquiries and hearings, and seize every opportunity to knock the administrative cadres… to make the administrative cadres have a respectful attitude towards the Senate—to know that the Senate is not a rubber stamp that can be easily fooled. Secondly, it also reminds the bystander elders how much authority they have. I don’t think anyone dislikes having authority. This approach will surely get the support of many elders.”

Zhou Weisen nodded. “You’re right. Any elder who doesn’t have an official position will surely want their words to carry more weight!”

“Also, we need to seize power,” Qian Shuiting said. “Master, if you could just get out of the laboratory. After your vaccine shows some promise, you should at least transfer to the industrial sector. Only then can you control more resources. Those who labor with their minds rule others; those who labor with their strength are ruled by others. There’s still some truth to that.”

“I’m afraid that will be difficult for a while,” Zhou Weisen shrugged. “Besides, the transmigrator group is all large state-owned enterprises. Where is the industrial sector?”

“I think I can go work at the Guangzhou station,” Zheng Shangjie said. “Si Kaide asked for my opinion a few days ago. He said the Guangzhou station needs someone who understands marketing and internal management to be in charge of the Zhiming Tower’s back-end.”

“Go, of course you should go,” Qian Shuixie said. “You haven’t told me about this.”

“If I go to Guangzhou, are you going to pick up girls here?”

“I promise I won’t pick up girls. Besides, I don’t fancy any of the girls here…”

Qian Shuiting thought this was a good opportunity to infiltrate the industrial sector. The Guangzhou station’s position was extraordinary. Taking on an important role there would be a huge boost in power. Also, he thought about how the Guangzhou and Leizhou stations had recently worked together to lobby for the expatriate group, creating momentum and making them seem like a new interest group. The expatriate group could utilize resources from both Lingao and the Ming. In the current environment, the personal danger was very low, but the potential benefits were huge. If they used the group’s lack of strict monitoring to make private deals with various parties, it was entirely possible. In the long run, it could become a situation where the tail wags the dog.

So, in fact, the Executive Committee was preparing to plant its own people in the Guangzhou station! Qian Shuiting was suddenly excited. With Zheng Shangjie entering the Guangzhou station system as a “plant,” she might very well occupy a high position there in the future.

Zhou Weisen said slowly, “I’m not hoping for you two to be separated, but this is indeed a good opportunity! If sister-in-law can go, it will be a great benefit for the future!”

“I have no objection! I absolutely support it,” Qian Shuixie said. “Xiao Jie was originally saying she was bored here and wanted to work in the cooperative. The Guangzhou station is much better than the cooperative.”

“Alright, then I’ll go!” Zheng Shangjie was not one to procrastinate. Doing “big business” in Guangzhou was certainly more to her liking than working in some cooperative in Lingao.