ps: Ask for a monthly pass, ask for a recommendation, ask for a collection, ask for a subscription, thank you.

After receiving a letter from the expeditionary force asking for help from the front, President Bullard closed the door of his office and lay alone at his desk writing and drawing, not knowing what he was doing.

When Brad walked out of the office, with a mysterious smile on his face, he told his staff that the Senate and House of Representatives were in session, and that he had something very important to discuss with the members and gentlemen of the Assembly.

At half past two in the afternoon, the members of the Senate and the House of Representatives arrived at the Grand Assembly Hall on time.

More than a thousand parliamentarians from the Semitic Republic gathered.

Taking advantage of the gap between the meeting and the meeting, the congressmen were very much talking and asking each other, what whimsical idea did President Bullard have?

What's the matter with everyone coming over in such a hurry?

Now, isn't this old thing anxious about General Merlot's misdeeds?

As a result, no one knew about it, no one heard the news beforehand, not even the subordinates in President Bullard's faction.

Although the lawmakers were confused, they were certain that it must be a big deal that Brad did such a good job of secrecy.

While the congressmen waited patiently, President Bullard walked into the large hall half an hour later, and instead of greeting the congressmen, he walked directly to the podium in the middle of the front row.

When the parliamentarians saw his appearance, they all stopped talking.

There was silence in the lobby, except for the occasional cough.

President Bullard glanced at the councillors in the room, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but move, and he smiled slightly. "You all know. We had difficulties in the military operation in Reshan. ”

The members of the parliament immediately began to discuss. There was a low buzz throughout the hall - and sure enough, it was.

Then again, there is nothing more important in the current affairs of the republican government than the expedition to Thunderbolt.

"Under the leadership of Generals Berendi and Merlot, we have achieved a gratifying victory, even a glorious victory that has never been seen in our 2,000-year history......

The parliamentarians couldn't help but talk about it again.

Brad's old thing is too shameless, although it is a praise of victory, but the meaning behind it is self-evident, but it is not explicitly stated. This glorious victory was achieved under his wise leadership.

Among the councillors below, there was a great deal of disdain in their hearts: if I had a beautiful daughter, I would have won this victory.

However, now President Bullard is sitting firmly in his seat, holding the two major weapons of the State Administration of Taxation and the newspaper, and he is really powerful in the Semitic people, and no one dares to provoke him in person.

"But......" Brad coughed lightly, changed his tone, and continued, "But our military strength is insufficient, which restricts our progress.

The expeditionary force was bogged down in the quagmire of the Thunder Thunder Man. If we don't solve the problem, we will spend a huge amount of military money on the expedition. There is a high probability of failure. ”

President Bullard explained the situation so harshly that many congressmen could not help but be moved, and when you think about it, it is indeed very possible.

If the status quo is not changed, the expeditionary force may be forced to retreat and return without success, and the republican government will become a big joke.

The public opinion that the people of Nexus had just been inspired by the victory would soon be lost, and Psychmann would once again be the object of Thunder's ridicule.

What's more, if a few more careerists jump out and agitate and hold accountable those legislators who call for war, maybe they will be elected in the next re-election.

This situation must not occur under any circumstances~!

Seeing that everyone fell silent again, President Bullard continued: "Therefore, this battle must be fought until we win~!"

Hearing his categorical words, the parliamentarians all became excited, stood up and applauded vigorously.

Some people shouted loudly: "Well said, said too well." ”

"Long live President Brad~!"

"Long live Lingshan~!"

“......“

Just now, what they feared most was that President Bullard would continue to fight unfavorably, and that the expedition would be cancelled, and President Bullard had a good reason to do so, and that he was forced to launch this expedition in the first place.

As the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Republic, he also has this right, but fortunately, President Bullard's firm statement relieved everyone.

This battle is going to be a bad battle, and he jumped out to wipe everyone's butts at this time, which is really no better.

"The expeditionary force needs reinforcements, and I have ordered all localities to squeeze out as many troops as possible and rush to the battlefield. President Bullard spoke aloud about the efforts he had just made, and then changed the conversation: "But this is far from enough, and it is conservatively estimated that we still need 200,000 to 300,000 troops armed with artillery, and the war plan will be extended for one year." ”

Parker and Hawkes in the audience nodded slightly, the root cause of the expeditionary force's current predicament is still a lack of troops.

In fact, with only tens of thousands of elites and more than 100,000 auxiliary troops, it is simply unrealistic and wishful thinking to defeat the Thunder Flash people with a population of 30 million and a vast land.

Probably only the most optimistic...... Only the craziest general would think so.

That's why Parker and Hawkes were reluctant to lead their troops, and if Brad gave them half a million men, half of them armed with machine guns and artillery, they would be happy to do the job.

General Berendi should have also seen it, so he was passive all the way.

Even General Merlot knew this, but in order to brush up on his prestige and exploits, he went up hard.

President Bullard looked at the parliamentarians in the audience, suddenly showed a mysterious smile, and said loudly: "For the sake of the new military expansion plan, for the sake of victory in this war, I ask the parliament to approve a new fiscal bill to raise military spending." ”

The Great Hall was buzzing with excitement in an instant.

The parliamentarians couldn't hold back any longer, and loudly discussed with the people next to them: it turned out that this was Brad's purpose this time.

This old boy hides deep enough~!

Unfazed by the clamor of the lawmakers, President Bullard raised his voice and said, "In this new finance bill." The government will first issue bonds worth 5 million gold coins. Raise at least $2.5 million in military spending by the end of the year. Support the actions of the expeditionary force.

Then, starting in January next year, the agricultural tax will be raised by 5 percent, the commercial tax by 8 percent, and the basic consumption tax by 3 percent.

It is expected that in the next three years, it can increase the tax revenue of 10 million gold coins for the government. ”

The parliamentarians were louder.

A lot of people are standing up, waving their fists, yelling at President Bullard on stage, if you look closely. You can see the smeared stars spewing out of their mouths.

"This can't be~!"

"Our average tax burden has reached 26 percent, and we can't increase it anymore. ”

"The tax pain index of the common people ranks first in the world, and how can people live. ”

"This is tyranny, and we are firmly against it. ”

“......”

President Bullard sat steadily behind the podium and couldn't help but laugh secretly as he watched the lawmakers squeak and bark like cats with their tails stepped on.

He shrugged his shoulders and said in a loud voice: "The tax increase is a last resort, to raise military funds for the war. After the victory in the war, the tax rate was adjusted back to the original level. ”

But. His words drowned out an angry chorus of opposition from lawmakers.

President Bullard shrugged and said, "I'm going to raise this tax bill to both houses for a vote." ”

Then he stood up and walked out in style amid the protests that filled the synagogue.

Until now, the lawmakers of the Caribbean faction have not figured out what is happening and why the president is suddenly asking for a tax increase.

Even if the military spending is insufficient, you can communicate with them in advance, and everyone will work together, not to ensure that the tax increase bill will be smooth.

How can this matter be handled by President Brad alone from beginning to end, this is unreasonable~!

President Bullard left a bill for the tax hike to Congress, flicked his sleeves, and returned to his presidential palace with a relaxed face.

Put on a symphony CD, pour a glass of aged red wine, pour it on the chair in the oval office, draw in the air with one hand, and close your eyes to the high-pitched music.

This puzzled the president's aides, who did not seem to worry at all about the rejection of the tax hike bill he had been working on behind closed doors.

Sure enough, two hours later, the House of Representatives rejected President Bullard's proposed tax hike on premature grounds.

President Bullard was not surprised at all to hear that the tax increase plan had been rejected, but just waved his hand to let Dorennie, who had come to report the news, out.

Behind closed doors, President Bullard raised his glass and said with a smile, "Cheers." ”

Then he drank it all, threw down his wine glass, and muttered: "These guys, who usually talk beautifully, are all peeing immediately." It's really not patriotic at all. ”

The members of the republican government are no longer the poor fugitives who were just driven out by Madolins, nor are they the little people in Caribbean City, the little aristocrats, small businessmen, and small intellectuals in the local area.

They are the dignified members of the republican government, the privileged magnates.

In the new round of reshuffle, wealth naturally flows into their hands.

Whether it is buying a house or land, opening a shop, a restaurant, or a guesthouse, or taking a loan from a bank to set up a factory, an engineering team to undertake government projects, and a businessman to connect with each other, he will receive 20 percent of the intermediary fee......

With power, money naturally comes to the door.

In other words, the parliamentarians are now rich, with personal assets ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. Or even millions.

President Bullard's plan to raise taxes was first put on their heads, and they just stepped on their tails, so they naturally vetoed them cleanly.

Even some people who are really worried about the country and the people feel that it is nothing to raise a little tax for the sake of winning the war, but they are also drowned in a group of negative votes.

Subsequently, the newspapers changed the tone of 'victory and victory' and openly reported on the current difficulties of the expeditionary force and the government's current financial difficulties.

The sudden change surprised the common people, and only then did they realize that the war situation was not as optimistic as they thought, and the republican government lacked money to continue fighting.

President Bullard's new plan to raise taxes also did not meet with the support of the people, and the war-torn life was just a little better, and suddenly the taxes were raised. And so it goes. Prices have to skyrocket.

So. And wages, inflation, white rice in the rice bowl, new clothes for the wife, lollipops for the children...... Compared with these things, it doesn't seem to matter if Lei Shan was unified two years later......

Some newspapers openly called on all Lingshan citizens to donate money for the war, and the reporter optimistically calculated that as long as 60 million Lingshan people donated five silver coins each, it would be enough to have 3 million gold coins. It can fully support the battlefield to fight.

The first to respond was the famous women's army in Lingshan, the Pink Panther.

The girls from the aristocracy not only donated money themselves, but also set an example very positively.

In this cold weather, they wore beautiful clothes with their long thighs and large snow-white pectoral muscles, carrying donation boxes on their backs, and went to the streets to collect donations from the people.

In this winter, it has become a beautiful scenery on the streets of Akadelin.

President Bullard even planned to go out into the streets himself to raise money for a campaign -- the kind of prestige campaign that Brad has been very keen on lately.

But Lord Lorraine sent Fiona a message: That's pretty much it. Be careful to play too high, being seen by others.

This discouraged President Bullard's propaganda plans.

As the expeditionary force's plight was revealed, the tide of battle seemed to take a turn for the worse. In the newspapers, the expeditionary force could suffer defeat at any moment.

The topic of withdrawal or defeat became popular in the government and among the people.

Just when the Lingshan people were feeling uneasy and hesitating, General Berendi in front sent back a news that shocked everyone, and the Leishan people asked for peace talks.

After receiving the news, the Bullard government, which was in internal and external difficulties, hesitated, and they held government meetings for several days in a row, and were forced to reluctantly accept Lei Shanren's request for peace talks.

As a result, everyone was speechless.

After continuous newspaper reports, everyone knew that President Bullard was opposed to sending troops in the first place. However, because of the strong demand of a handful of parliamentarians and soldiers with ulterior motives, and in desperation, in order to take into account the overall situation, it was announced that troops would be dispatched.

Later, things turned out to be the same as the visionary president's initial judgment.

But despite this, the president did not gloat because of this, but did his best for the soldiers of the expeditionary force.

Almost every day, the lights in the president's office were on until late at night, and every day he was thinking about the changes in the political pattern of the world and guiding the front-line soldiers in the battle against Lei Shan. I care if they can eat enough and wear warm clothes......

Later, for the sake of the soldiers on the front line and the future of the Semitic race, he worked hard and painstakingly to propose a tax increase bill.

But it turned out to be rejected by the legislators.

The government has no money, and no more troops to fill in the hole.

Although the president is wise and wise, has a torch-like vision, and has put forward many good proposals, he has been repeatedly constrained by those congressmen, and there is nothing he can do in the face of the current situation.

The expeditionary force is now mired in a quagmire, and it is difficult to move an inch in the thunder. Peace talks, an honorable end to this war, seem to be the best option at the moment.

Even the people of the Black Band, who wanted to oppose the most, could not give any reason to stop the peace talks, unless they could get millions of military spending, hundreds of thousands of reinforcements, and let Merlot continue to fight.

At this time, a smart man finally came to his senses, they were tricked by Brad, and the old boy had already made up his mind to negotiate peace.

What tax bills, fundraisers, are all tricks to deceive them, Brad played a big game of mahjong, disguised himself as a victim.

But even if they knew, they couldn't say anything, that tax bill was vetoed by their own hands, and from that moment on, they had fallen into the pit that Brad had dug.

Everyone couldn't help but sigh: This old guy wasn't quite stupid before, when did he become smarter, could it be said that being an official can really train people?

In mid-November, in a snowflake, the negotiating team from Thunder Flash made a long journey to Akadrine.

This time it was a large group of thirty people.

At the same time, there was a temporary ceasefire between the expeditionary force and the Thunder Mountains.

The expeditionary force stayed where it was, waiting for orders. Because he was worried that General Merlot would make some small moves in the dark and provoke the war again, he was also transferred back from the front line by President Bullard to participate in the negotiations with the Lei Shan people and serve as the deputy head of the negotiation team.

Negotiations between the two sides began with a strong smell of gunpowder.

Seeing Melo appear at the negotiating table, Lei Shanren immediately quit, and dozens of people glared at Melo at the same time, and their aura was very powerful.

But Merlot didn't care, as if he didn't see it, and his attitude was arrogant.

The enraged Thunderbolts were the first to demand that Merlot be punished for his war crimes, and they had done their homework before they came, knowing what was in vogue in the republican government right now, and they shouted the supreme slogan of protecting human rights.

However, it was unceremoniously rejected by the Lingshan, and the first day of negotiations broke up unhappily after a big fight.

Guangguang was concerned about whether Melo was qualified to participate in the negotiations, and the two sides quarreled directly for three days.

Mellot kind of understood, and Brad pulled him back, not to let him scare the Thunder Bolts, but to let him pull the hatred and make the Thunderbolts squirt wildly.

Three days later, the Thunderbolts acquiesced in Merlot's participation, and then quarreled for another two days over whether to negotiate with the Spirits on the premise of withdrawing troops.

The negotiation process was quite intense and exciting, and the negotiators on both sides were overwhelmed and had to take a break.

Brad intended to involve as many people as possible in the negotiations, with ministers in the government and leaders of parliamentary groups taking turns to experience the joy of bargaining with the Thunderbolts.

However, the negotiation process was also delayed indefinitely, and the two sides had just reached an agreement on a trivial issue yesterday, and when a big man came in, the people were unhappy and suddenly overturned it.

The result can only be a group of exhausted people, but they can't cry or laugh.

Everyone began to doubt President Bullard's intentions, what is the intention of this old boy to pull everyone to the negotiating table with Lei Shanren, but then deliberately delay the negotiation process with means......?