chsdbacks #585 - The Constitutional Convention (Part 1)
#585 - The Constitutional Convention (Part 1)
With the arrival of the last batch of representatives, the entire Feiliu Fortress was bustling with activity.
A large number of nobles and landlords, big and small, who had come due to panic, gathered in Feiliu Fortress, along with local and foreign merchants, local and foreign citizens, prosperous farmers who had just finished planting, and laborers who came to watch the excitement.
During this time, the Salvation Army first printed and posted a large number of leaflets and notices promoting the ideas of the Holy Path Sect, and then the knights of North Munde County also printed a large number of Huanno Sect notices.
The monks of the Holy Father Society even took to the streets, directly preaching to passers-by.
The clergy and monks under Melia were not to be outdone, and would also promote Melia's policies on the streets.
Carters and boatmen carried complex and chaotic messages, spreading them everywhere along the waterways.
Although the church was driven away and replaced by one or two new lords, it didn't make much difference to the nobles.
They just needed a lord above them, and they didn't care what their name was, as long as their interests were protected.
However, the news that Melia and Horn both hoped to reduce the power of the nobles was unacceptable to many small knights and nobles in the countryside.
They either rushed to Feiliu Fortress to try to stop this behavior, or secretly transferred their property to prepare to flee the Thousand River Valley.
They used almost every method, bribing the Salvation Army and the North Munde knights, and even buying off the representatives.
But the unified thing was that they did not dare to confront the two with force.
From April 29th to May 3rd, Melia constantly met with lords, guild leaders, and wealthy merchants from all over the place, and even accepted some people to participate in the constitutional conference.
The door of Horn's residence was also constantly crowded, but except for some monks and monks, most of them were scattered laborers and refugees from the Holy Sun Volunteer Army.
Compared to the Grand Duchess's forces, which controlled abundant resources, although Horn could dominate Langsand County and had a record of defeating Prince Kongdai, he could not form an overall advantage in the Thousand River Valley.
If there was no Melia option, those noble lords and wealthy merchants would definitely have to pinch their noses and come to Horn.
Under the inertia of history, Melia's identity has a natural united front ability - the blood of the Three Kings, born as a knight.
But without Melia, Horn's rebel army would probably have been wiped out by Prince Kongdai's nine edicts long ago.
Both sides disliked each other, but neither had the strength to fall out.
With the great enemy of the Leia Kingdom in front of them, they had no good way but to unite and compromise.
Feiliu Fortress finally ushered in the moment when the constitutional conference was held amidst the noise and chaos.
Early in the morning on May 3rd, Rang Bang wore a rented dress and mingled with the group of craftsmen and citizens of Liborole, slowly walking into the venue under the guidance of the military police.
The venue for the constitutional conference was actually the Papal Palace of Feiliu Fortress.
Of course, since Johnny VIII took office and toured the Thousand River Valley diocese as usual, this has been the palace of the Archbishops of Feiliu Fortress.
The main venue for this conference was the preaching hall of the bishops.
However, compared with the cleanliness of the chapel and the sanctuary, the preaching hall was previously full of dust, and it was obviously not used for a long time.
By the time Rang Bang and others walked in, the venue had been cleaned.
Hanging on the walls on both sides were floor-to-ceiling vertical flags. The flag on the left was black with a red border, with a red 屮-shaped cross embroidered in the middle, and the flag on the right was blue with white irises and obsidian embroidered on it.
The morning sun shone in from the tall but narrow stained-glass mosaic windows on both sides, illuminating the dust flying in the air.
Rang Bang hid behind Liborole, carefully looking at the venue in front of him.
The oval venue in front of him could probably seat two or three hundred people, and the side facing north was the main stage or the council seat.
Holy Sun Horn and Duke Melia sat on the council seat, one on the left and one on the right. Today, they were both wearing ancient El-style red and white toga robes, with blue-green olive branch crowns behind their ears.
Holy Sun smiled as usual, reaching out to greet the representatives who walked in.
Melia rarely wore only a half-faced gilded iron mask, but placed the black lacquered iron fist of her left hand on the table.
That iron fist was a real iron fist. After her left hand was cut off by Prince Kongdai, she specially made an iron fist and installed it on her original wrist.
These two were obviously dressed as ancient El consuls, and even the number was in line with the traditional system of ancient El consuls.
Under the black and red flag on the left were Salvation Army officers in black woolen jackets and jackets, and monks of the Holy Father Society in linen robes.
Sitting in the first row closest to the council seat was Jeanne, followed by Jeshka, Granpwen, Busak, Old Grandmother Vivian, Pasrik, and a group of legion commanders.
Under the blue and white flag on the right were nobles wearing woolen tights and ripped puff-sleeved silk robes, or knights wearing slim-fitting narrow-sleeved knight costumes, and of course, a group of secularized priests.
Sitting in the first row on the right side closest to the council seat were the White Horse Knight Spittrochu, the Red Horse Knight Moro, Count Sechinger of North Cold Valley, Count Samboli of Stone Wall Town, Count Nathaniel of Dagu Village, and so on.
Under the guidance of the military police, the seats facing the council seat were the seats for the representatives.
Someone was already sitting in the first row, including Catherine, the executive of Rapid Stream City, Martin, the new dean of Brago Monastery, Valentine Taylor, Andrei, and a group of bankers and wealthy merchants from Rapid Stream City.
The later representatives automatically divided into three layers: monks and small nobles sat in the front, citizens and merchants sat in the middle, and craftsmen and farmers sat in the back.
Seeing the messy seating arrangements and the sweating, smelly, and jostling representatives, the people on the right side couldn't help but roll their eyes.
"Before we begin, I have a small question." Clowen, the representative of Changfeng Fortress Knight, suddenly stood up and pointed to the representatives who were taking their seats. "The constitutional conference is a meeting to determine the country of Thousand River Valley. Why let these low-level people tarnish our sacred hall?"
"What do you mean?" Horn turned his head to look at the knight with the thick mustache.
Clowen performed a chest-抚礼: "Let them out, and summon them in when they need to state their case."
The representatives of the noble forces on the right side whistled or applauded to cheer for Clowen.
The representatives of the non-aligned forces who had just sat down in the middle seat and had not had time to speak lowered their heads awkwardly.
"If low-level people have to go out, then I might as well go out too." Horn leaned back in his chair. "I was originally a coarse cloth farmer from Honey River. Has Thousand River Valley conferred any titles on me?"
"If Your Majesty leaves, then we will leave too."
"Yes, I am a refugee, and I am also a low-level person. We will leave too."
The Salvation Army and the Holy Father monks on the left side clamored.
Seeing that the Salvation Army on the left side was supporting them, the representatives in the middle seat bravely applauded and booed.
Standing in a chorus of boos, the nobles sitting occasionally argued, while Clowen stood there stiffly, his face turning green and white.
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This was obviously something that Clowen had not expected. It should be known that Horn's position was the honor of a Grand Duke or even a King, and he could still recognize himself as a "low-level person."
Even if a farmer bandit is conferred as a knight, he still has to find a noble ancestor for himself.
Everyone is wearing clothes, why are you still running naked?
And it's not just him, those legion commanders are actually running naked with him, which makes Clowen embarrassed.
In the booing and the snickers of the people around him, Clowen couldn't stand or sit, and his back felt like ants were crawling on it.
Fortunately, Melia on the council seat relieved him: "We are all people of Thousand River Valley, there is no such thing as low-level or high-level. Clowen, please sit down."
Clowen breathed a sigh of relief and sat down, glaring at the smiling Horn with hatred.
Melia turned her head: "Your Excellency Horn, since everyone is here, please announce the start of the meeting."
Horn stood up without hesitation, pressed his hands down to signal the audience to be quiet, and then said: "Distinguished Duke Hemasite, respected noble and monk representatives, and all friends attending this historic meeting.
Today, we gather here with awe and responsibility to forge the foundation of a new country.
This is not just an ordinary meeting, but a great mission, because what we are shouldering is to lay the eternal cornerstone of order and justice for the future generations of Thousand River Valley - the Constitution.
The Constitution is not just a compilation of laws, it is the guide of all laws, but also a sacred contract.
Its significance transcends words, it carries faith and hope, and connects the will of the kingdom of heaven with the order of the mortal world. In this land that has been ravaged by disputes, the Constitution is our common language.
It is the guideline for national action, and the castle that protects all Thousand River Valley people from tyranny.
The struggles of the past have made us understand that force and passion alone cannot maintain the long-term peace of the country. The Constitution will be our peace agreement, teaching us how to find consensus in differences and seek reconciliation in conflicts.
Representatives, standing here, I am not speaking as a power holder, but as a humble servant, serving the will of the Holy Father and the believers.
I believe that each of you also has the same sense of responsibility, because what we decide not only affects ourselves, but also relates to the present and future of Thousand River Valley.
For this reason, in every step of formulating the Constitution, we must ask ourselves: Does this conform to the will of the Holy Father? Is this beneficial to the stability and development of the country? Does this protect the dignity and freedom of the believers?
History will remember today. Let us begin this great undertaking with awe. May the glory of the Holy Father always shine on this land, and may His wisdom guide us to make the right choices."
As soon as he finished speaking, applause and cheers rang out throughout the audience. Even the people on the right side applauded.
The applause lasted for a full minute before it stopped, and Melia walked to the front of the stage at the right time: "There is a copy of the 'Thousand River Valley Sacred Charter Draft' under everyone's chairs. After reading it, we can enter the first discussion session."
A rustling sound immediately rang out in the venue.
Horn also sat down and picked up the 'Charter Draft' that he had drafted.
In fact, the essence of this constitutional conference is for all classes of Thousand River Valley to discuss together what kind of temporary country to establish.
Yes, a temporary country.
Horn was actually clear in his heart that the country of Thousand River Valley is still just an adhesive of various forces, a grass-roots team, an empty shell.
If there is no powerful foreign enemy like the Leia Kingdom, I am afraid that it will split internally.
But it is precisely because there is a powerful foreign enemy like the Leia Kingdom that the internal split of Thousand River Valley has the possibility of being healed.
Even if this is a temporary country, this constitutional conference can greatly affect the real constitutional conference in the later period, so Horn has to be cautious.
Friends who often establish countries know that the first step in determining a country is not the name of the country or the territory, but always determining the source and legitimacy of sovereignty.
Taking a deep breath, Horn opened the first page of the charter, which read -
"The sovereignty of Thousand River Valley originates from the absolute authority of the Holy Father, and is embodied through the faith and will of the believers. The Holy Father grants all believers the right to participate in national affairs, but the believers transfer this right through a contract with the supreme ruler in exchange for protection and order."
The first paragraph on the first page immediately caused an uproar at the constitutional conference.