Chapter 1041
Among the officials who were criticized for their incompetence, the officers of the Ministry of Military Affairs made up the majority (the military judge in the army was also appointed by the Ministry of Supervision). After all, such a huge amount of resources and money were gathered in the Ministry of Military Affairs, and they needed to manage, plan, allocate, and transport them. It was indeed a difficult task, and it was the first time the Ministry of Military Affairs had experienced it. The lack of experience and manpower had led to a lot of mistakes. Sesta emphasized this point, hoping that the Ministry of Military Affairs could learn from it and improve its efficiency.
Hilos, Felicius, and the other officials of the Ministry of Military Affairs looked calm. In fact, around October last year, they had already realized this problem and took the initiative to cooperate with Merses. The Finance Department sent people to assist the Ministry of Military Affairs in managing and allocating resources, and the situation became much better.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Ancetanos, Minister of Education Montauticus, Minister of Medical Affairs Herpes … one by one, they went on stage to make a summary. The last one to go on stage was not a minister but the Scepter Priest of the Hades Temple of the Kingdom of Diónia, Plesinas.
In fact, when the Kingdom Assembly was first implemented, the Devers had hesitated about whether or not to let Plesinas participate in the assembly. After all, when the idea that the Devers were the descendants of Hades had been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people of the kingdom, Hades had actually become the exclusive god of the royal family of Diónia, and Hades had become the most important god that the people of the kingdom believed in. The Kingdom Assembly was mainly to discuss the administrative affairs of the kingdom, and to let the human servant of the guardian god of the Kingdom of Diónia be supervised and criticized by the representatives at the assembly was not only an offense to the god, but also disrespectful to the royal family.
However, the Devers considered that in any era, religion was a double-edged sword. If there were no restrictions, as time went by, it was likely to override the secular world and threaten the royal power. Moreover, the priests of the Temple of Hades did not only worship the guardian god of the kingdom, but they were also responsible for supervising and regulating the behavior of the priests of the other temples in the kingdom, which naturally included a lot of administrative affairs.
After much consideration, the Devers finally decided to let Plesinas participate in the Kingdom's General Assembly at the beginning of every year. He would be the last minister of the Kingdom to make a conclusion on the first day of the General Assembly.
In fact, ever since Plesinas had participated in the conference, he had been asked a lot of questions. Of course, they weren't about the Temple of Hades itself, but about other temples.
Ever since its establishment, the Kingdom of Dionia had been a country that believed in many gods. Not only did the Greek gods worship among the people, but there were also gods worshiped by other races. It was not easy to balance the interests of all of them. However, the opinions of the representatives also contributed to the gradual improvement of the kingdom's management of religion, nipping any bad signs in the bud as soon as possible.
After Plesinas's speech, there were also many questions. Even Publius raised his second question in this conference. Of course, his question was naturally related to "Can the temples of the Rome gods be treated fairly, can they continue to worship in the kingdom …" and so on.
Prince Pleasinus answered seriously.
Although he was not very satisfied, Publius was still a lot more relieved.
At this point in the conference, according to the usual practice, the agenda for the day was over. But this time, the Kingdom's General Assembly was different. Because it was during the war, the schedule of the entire conference had to be shortened as much as possible to avoid accidents. In order not to affect the war, for the stability of the kingdom, and in addition to the busy government affairs, the governors of some important towns in the frontlines could not even come. They only sent representatives, such as Rome, Catanea, Lucenia, and so on.
But it was already afternoon, and the representatives had been sitting for most of the day. So, Cornelus announced that the meeting would be temporarily adjourned for half an hour. After eating a simple dinner provided by the Senate, the meeting would continue. The next content was to introduce the governance of the newly occupied territories.
Finally, it was Tibulus' turn! It was really a long conference! Publius sighed softly. Such a format of the conference was really an eye-opener for him. Just from the series of summary by the ministers of the Kingdom of Diónia, it could be seen how meticulous and rigorous the governance of the Diónia people were. Perhaps this was necessary to govern such a large kingdom.
Publius thought to himself as his stomach growled. He was so focused on listening that he didn't realize that he was so hungry that his chest was sticking to his back.
It was the first time he and Tibulus attended the conference. Unlike many of the representatives who were very experienced, they had a full breakfast. Just as he was considering whether to follow the other representatives out of the conference hall, Antares suddenly asked, "Lord Publius, how do you feel after listening to these summaries?"
Publius replied without hesitation, "I feel that it is not easy to be a senator or an official in Diónia! The pressure is too great! "
This was indeed what he felt.
… …
That night, the Great Council Hall of Turín was brightly lit, and the people continued to fight. Many of the households in the Turín territories also lit candles, and the desolation of the past was swept away. One after another, the sounds of laughter broke the silence of the night.
The first day of the new year was not any celebration day for the people of Diónia, but according to the custom of the previous life, the Devers would always hold a family banquet on this day to say goodbye to the old and welcome the new. As a result, this custom spread in Turín, and the people rushed to imitate it.
Naturally, at this time, the residence of the Devers on the Hill of the Kings was even livelier. Not only was it brightly lit everywhere, but the open space in the courtyard was filled with dining tables. The palace guards and servants on duty for the royal family sat in the backyard and the front yard.
There was a large table in the hall, where the two wives of the Devers, four children, as well as the chief of the court, Ribazot, and the slave manager, Molina, sat together.
The Devers were not at home, and Aegnis did not like to socialize. Banquets like this were naturally hosted by Cristoya. Usually, the consort was strict and decisive, always cold as ice, and rarely showed her feminine charm. Today, however, she had a smile on her face as she went to the front and back yard to toast the guards and servants, thanking them for their contributions to the royal family in the past year, and wishing them good luck in the new year.
Cristoya returned to the hall amidst the gratitude and blessings, and sat on the main seat. Before she could speak, she heard Briantes say, "Mother, when will Father come back? I miss him! "
"I miss dad too!" Aviya said softly right after that.
Although Eunice and Apox did not say anything, their longing was evident in their words.
It could be said that because the Devers, Cloto Catax and Adoris were still fighting far away, and Cynthia had just given birth to a child and was still recuperating at home, there were fewer people than in previous years. It was inevitable that it was a little lonely.
Although the Devers had not had much time to spend with the children due to their busy government affairs in recent years, Cristoya was strict with the children, and Aegnis was gentle but not passionate enough. Only the Devers could find time to spend with the children, and he was always able to get along with the children, letting them have fun. Now that the Devers had been away for a year, how could they not miss him after such a long time?
Cristoya was saddened by their words. After a moment of silence, she comforted them in a gentle tone, "Children, didn't you all read your father's letter yesterday? He and your two brothers are safe and sound, and they even won a great battle in Sicily. The war will end soon! So now, let us raise our glasses and wish your father and brothers a safe journey and a speedy return, okay? "
"Yes!!" the four children replied in unison.
Thus, under Cristoya's lead, everyone silently prayed to Hades for blessings.
"Alright, let us toast to celebrate the arrival of the new year!"
As soon as Cristoya's voice fell, the children excitedly raised their glasses of watered wine, especially Briantes who held the wooden glass high.
Just as he put down his glass, he heard Aegnis say faintly, "I wonder how Clotho is doing in Rome? He's never lived alone for so long before! "
Cristoya was stunned, then glared at her with dissatisfaction. She thought to herself, 'What's wrong with you, Aegnis? I've just appeased these children, and you say that without looking at the occasion. How can we maintain the joyous atmosphere of this banquet? '
… …
The whole family missed Cloto Catax, but far away in Rome, Cloto Catax was not in the mood to miss his parents and siblings on this special night. He was just about to eat dinner when his immediate superior, the Rome construction official Pasion, personally came to his door to ask for help.
"Lord Pasion, are you saying that there's a problem with the stone bridge we built?!" After hearing Pasion's words, Cloto Catax was shocked.
"Because it's going to be checked and accepted tomorrow, I asked the engineers to inspect it thoroughly today. In the end, they found that the second pier has deviated, so they immediately informed me. According to their analysis, it might be because the riverbed there is too soft, and the foundation of the piers is not strong enough. It's all because the City Hall was too pressuring us. We didn't do a more detailed survey of the riverbed and make a better construction plan. We just wanted to finish as soon as possible. That's why it's like this! "Pasion said regretfully.
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