Todd put a small piece of sashimi in his mouth, chewed it carefully, and while marveling at how much more refined the food was in Muxi City, he asked, "I heard that the main competitor in this election is the Chamber of Commerce Alliance. Who exactly are they?"
Emerson cleared his throat: "Let me introduce it. The Business Alliance consists of forty-nine large chambers of commerce, covering industries such as manufacturing, textiles, maritime trade, printing, aquaculture, brewing, etc., basically including all industries except for exotic businesses."
"The backgrounds of the high-ranking members of the Chamber of Commerce are incredibly diverse. For example, the president of the Nielsko Mining Chamber of Commerce was a priest personally authorized by the Pope, and the president of the Sand-Tracing Maritime Merchants is a retired military officer from the Empire..."
Todd suddenly asked, "Do these people meet the criteria for cabinet election?"
Standing to the side, Huggins explained softly, "According to the Security Bureau's investigation, they have all settled in Twilight City for more than three years, and have all obtained the status of Honorary Knights..."
Emerson shook his head and said, "But these people have intricate relationships with other forces, and many of them own businesses and families in cities of other kingdoms."
Todd asked, "Who is leading the business alliance?"
“Rutledge Dawson.” Emerson said the name with a headache: “An old nobleman from a family of the Silver Ring Kingdom, who once led troops in the Northern Legion, lived as a prisoner in Twilight City for a period of time, and later became an honorary knight.”
Todd was somewhat surprised: "How did someone like that become the leader of the Chamber of Commerce?"
At this moment, Huggins stepped in to explain: "The Dawson family is a prominent noble family in the Silver Ring Kingdom. Rutledge's father and grandfather both made great contributions on the battlefield against the North, so they have many connections with the old noble forces. During that war of annihilation, the Dawson family saw the decline of the Silver Ring royal family and transferred their family wealth to other places early on, and they were the first noble family to pledge allegiance to Twilight City."
Todd looked at Hudgens and questioned, "How did he obtain his honorary knighthood?"
Huggins lowered his head and said, "After the Dawson family entered Twilight City, they funded universities, built schools, supported artists, and helped the poor... The citizens of Twilight City had a great fondness for this family. In the first ceremony for knights elected by the citizens, the Dawson family occupied six seats."
Todd frowned and nodded to Emerson, saying, "Go on."
"The Dawson family controls nearly 27% of the daily consumer goods market, 25% of the smelting and processing industry, 14% of the textile industry, about 9% of the land ownership, and about 5% of the land transportation industry in the entire city of Muxi."
Following up on Emerson's topic, Terence added, "The Dawson family is also the largest benefactor of Muxi University. They have funded more than 90 professors and nearly 600 students. There are about 130 studios and research laboratories named after their family throughout the university."
Emerson glanced at Todd and said, "Your Majesty, by the way, the chair you are sitting in and the tableware you are using were both manufactured by manufacturers under Dawson."
Todd held the silver fork in his hand to his eyes. A special mark starting with the letter D on the handle made him fall silent.
"Moreover, in recent years, Dawson has used methods such as marriage alliances and equity swaps to form a solid business group with the Sanchez and Tobias families of Twilight City. Whether it is negotiation, disputes, or demands, they have clear rules of interest and division of roles within the group."
Todd rubbed his forehead: "Over the years, we've been busy dealing with external threats, but we never imagined that such a behemoth would grow up right next to us."
Seeing the guilty look on Huggins' face, Emerson explained, "Your Majesty, it's not entirely our fault for being careless. The Dawson family has registered multiple business names and, through agents and indirect control, has taken control of many assets and industries in Muxi City. Even if we investigate, we can only find many unrelated controllers, and we can't find the real owners behind them at all."
Todd waved his hand: "Let's not talk about anything else. Tell me, what are your chances of winning this election?"
Emerson exchanged glances with the others and said hesitantly, "The chances of winning are slim."
"Why?"
"Some of Dawson's campaign slogans and governing policies have won the approval of the vast majority of citizens."
Emerson held up his index finger: "The first thing to be dealt with is the parish war. The Dawson family has proposed to launch a 'war against God' to wipe those dirty scum of the church from the world. They say that those liars in the church have deceived and exploited believers with a false god that does not exist, depriving them of their wealth and humanity, and now it is time to pay for everything."
At this moment, Moore Rupert, the person in charge of the Musi Cathedral, who was sitting at the end of the table, couldn't help but speak up: "The statements made by these people are not only attacking the Church of the Father and the Orthodox Church, but also attacking Protestantism, and even questioning Your Majesty's divine status. Now, every day at the entrance of the Musi Cathedral, there are groups of ignorant students handing out leaflets to believers, claiming that God does not exist and that religion is nothing but a deception to cover up the truth."
Upon hearing this, Cumberland, who had been holding back for a long time, finally could no longer contain his anger.
The hot-tempered old knight slammed his fist on the table and roared, "If you ask me, let's just send out soldiers and hang all these troublemakers! Then hang their bodies on the flagpole in the center of the square and let those bastards see what happens when they don't behave!"
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