Chapter 183 (Voting)

Sheng Chunqiu was holding a small stack of documents in her arms. At this moment, she lowered her eyes, placed the documents on the table, and pulled one out from them.

All eyes were focused on this, with countless cameras behind the council chamber zooming in on the documents on the table.

The round table was large, and the light shining down from above was so bright that Yan Shi felt for a moment that he couldn't even see the faces of everyone around the table.

Apart from Sheng Chunqiu.

Her face still held the familiar composure that Yan Shi knew.

Since Yan Shi joined the company, he has always been a reliable and trustworthy deputy.

Director of the Implementation Division of the General Administration.

What was pulled out was Yan Shi's appointment letter when he joined the company.

Because it was an important official document, it was put into the General Administration Archives and sealed when Yan Shi took it to the Foreign Affairs Bureau on his first day of work.

The file content remains unchanged, still just two simple lines.

It's unclear whether the document underwent authentication during archiving or something else, but Yan Shi's name, along with the names of his recommenders and appointers, were overwritten with characters that Yan Shi didn't recognize, as if they were deeply engraved on the document.

Sheng Chunqiu: "There is nothing wrong with the appointment letter itself. However, apart from the fact that the appointer, namely the current priest of the Heavenly Mandate Platform, has already passed away and the time cannot be verified, there are also doubts about the recommender."

“According to the regulations of the Bureau of Otherworldly Affairs, the nominee for the position of Director-General must possess the strength of a demigod or higher, and may not hold a position in any faction belonging to the Underworld.” Her voice was steady.

"Currently, there are only five qualified recommenders in the inner world, and these are not the real names of any of them."

"Strength of at least demigod..." Yan Shi slowly repeated, leaning back in his chair. "My recommender is a god. How do you know the true names of all the gods?"

“But Director Yan.” Sheng Chunqiu paused for a moment, then finally looked up to meet Yan Shi’s eyes. “Since the end of the Holy War more than twenty years ago, the gods have not appeared in the inner world for a long time.”

"The Yu family's prophecy clearly points to Ragnarok. Almost all of them have fallen into weakness and slumber. Only a very few gods are still active in the Inner World." Sheng Chunqiu pulled out another small stack of documents. "Their true names are not recorded in this way."

“Because of the special nature of the appointment of the Director-General of the Bureau of Extraordinary Affairs, these deities have served as recommenders for previous directors. All appointment documents are kept in the Bureau's archives, bearing their real names, which I brought with me.” Sheng Chunqiu paused after unfolding the documents, then continued, “Most importantly…”

"Director Yan, your employment documents do not contain a letter of recommendation from this 'deity'."

Actually, whether or not there is a letter of recommendation is not important.

Yan Shi frowned, his thoughts turning again, and slowly sorted out the key points.

The Heavenly Mandate Platform is unclaimed.

Since Kirina has sacrificed herself to protect the world, no one can prove her legitimacy as the head of the Bureau of Alien Affairs.

Even if it's not the recommender's fault, other problems will be found.

It's just one reason.

It's up to you whether you believe it or not.

Whether one believes or not always depends on one's personal stance.

Sheng Chunqiu remained standing, then slightly lowered his head to look at Yan Shi sitting opposite him.

The overhead light cast her shadow on the round table. As always, Sheng Chunqiu stood in front of the desk in Yan Shi's office, reporting on recent key tasks.

Just like when she presented the documents today saying there were problems with Yan Shi's onboarding process, her logic was clear, she was well-prepared, and her move was decisive.

The air fell silent for a moment.

Then, Yan Shi chuckled softly and tapped his finger on the table.

She didn't look at Sheng Chunqiu again, but instead glanced around the round table, a half-smile playing on her lips: "What do you all think?"

After a moment of silence around the round table, someone finally spoke.

As one of the main cities, Lingkong City, after Yan Shi razed the branch office to the ground, saw the rebuilt branch office of the Bureau of Disorder exert extremely strong control over the entire main city. To avoid suspicion, it was not Gu Feng, the head of the branch office, who came this time, but Ming Song, whom they had previously contacted.

At this moment, Ming Song spoke first: "Lingkong City believes that there is no problem with Director Yan's employment documents. A letter of recommendation is not a requirement for a director's employment documents. All employment procedures are in compliance with regulations."

As soon as she finished speaking, Meng Ningcha smiled slightly and said softly, "As for Chaoge, they have more faith in Shengchu's judgment. In addition..."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over Yan Shi with an ambiguous meaning. "Chaoge believes that we should not entrust all decision-making power of the General Administration to someone whose name we have never heard of before."

The atmosphere inside the council chamber had become tense.

“Alright.” Chun Yuqing tapped the edge of the table and said, “Arguing back and forth isn’t a solution.” She turned to Yan Shi and said, “Since everyone has different opinions and each has their own reasons, and we are in the Holy Covenant Court, let’s just vote.”

"Was the onboarding process for Director Yan reasonable?"

This was another operation that Yan Shi was unfamiliar with.

She didn't say anything more, but stared blankly at a ballot box that rose from below the round table. The ballot box was made of some unknown material and its surface was engraved with intricate patterns.

Meanwhile, in addition to Yan Shi, a transparent card slot rose up in front of each seat on the table, containing three neatly arranged rectangular talisman plates, with no difference in appearance on the back.

Yan Shi turned his head to look at the front of Grand Duke Lorenz.

The surface of the talisman is smooth, and the front is engraved with the words "Agree", "Disagree", and "Abstain".

Without the slightest hesitation, Meng Ningcha picked up one of the tokens, stood up, and walked lightly to the ballot box, throwing the token inside. The slot in front of her table automatically returned the remaining two tokens to the round table.

Meng Ningcha did not hide her choice. The talisman in her hand clearly displayed the word "Oppose".

Chun Yuqing: "We have half an hour to vote, so please make your decision carefully."

As she spoke, she took a talisman from the card slot, spun her wheelchair to the ballot box, threw the talisman in, and headed towards the door of the council chamber.

One by one, many people left the round table, until only Yan Shi and Grand Duke Lorenz remained.

Sheng Chunqiu had already quietly taken the documents from the table and left.

The lights above the round table finally dimmed, and the media behind them temporarily turned off their cameras as they took a break.

Grand Duke Lorenz made no attempt to hide his feelings. He took the "Agree" talisman and held it in his palm. After watching the card slot in front of his seat retract into the round table, he suddenly spoke up: "When Sheng Chunqiu came in, you didn't seem very surprised."

Author's Note: To avoid dragging out the plot, I'll add an extra chapter tomorrow morning. I've already finished most of it and am currently revising. Goodnight everyone, get some sleep! (heart emoji)