Munitions Empire-Chapter 1120: Newcomers in Office 1041

"The proposal from the subordinate..." In the financial department office of the Wenhua Hall a few days later, Wang Yucái looked somewhat nervously at the stunningly beautiful Imperial Concubine Alice.

To be honest, aside from her blonde hair and blue eyes, Wang Yucái had to admit that the Concubine, once known as the most beautiful woman of the Northern Ridge, was indeed pretty.

With an additional aura of nobility, Alice sitting there fully met every fantasy a man might have of a female boss in the workplace. She didn’t look at all like a mother of several children, maintaining an impeccable figure.

However, what made Wang Yucái nervous was not Alice’s beauty, but the funding proposal he had submitted the day before, which she was holding in her hands.

Chen Jing, the new Vice Minister, had submitted to him a construction plan to expand the throughput capacity of Beiyuan City port. This plan was full of ambitions, actually requesting a construction fund of 150 million Tang Yuan in one gulp.

Heaven knows where Chen Jing got the confidence to ask for more than a hundred million Gold Coins at once: Wang Yucái, serving as the Minister of Revenue for the Dahua Empire for so many years, had never seen what a real one hundred million Gold Coins looked like.

"Such proposals can directly be delivered by the secretary of the attendant’s office next time. Vice Minister Wang, are you bored with nothing to do? To deliver the application by yourself?" Alice had long been accustomed to seeing such official documents with that kind of expression.

The Ministry of Industry on the other side really had been spending money as if it were no object. A casual project application would exceed one billion, and it wasn’t unusual to see some projects involve several tens or even hundreds of billions.

These kinds of funds aren’t actually paid in one lump sum, but rather distributed over time. In fact, it isn’t too much, especially considering that the Ministry of Industry of the Great Tang Empire also doubles as the Ministry of Construction, the full name being the Ministry of Industry and Construction...

Interestingly, these two departments, clearly distinct, are near-merged in development: the Minister of Industry is Mathews, while the Minister of Construction is Parker.

They have both been ministers, working together all this while, but now with a new Vice Minister Chen Jing, they have this peculiar title of "Vice Minister of Industry and Construction".

"I believe that for such an important application, it is more proper to deliver it in person. If Your Highness has any questions, it would not have to be delayed..." Wang Yucái explained. He felt that handling such a large sum of money should be personally addressed by him. It showed the importance given to the funds and also allowed for the maintenance of good communication with the boss.

"If you personally run around for sums like this, you might as well not work later on," Alice reminded her subordinate: "The Military funding easily amounts to several billion, the Agricultural sector’s funds are also counted in billions, and the Industrial Construction sector has a lot of money too... If you personally deliver every time, won’t you be occupying the Vice Minister’s position but doing the work of the attendant’s secretary?"

"Next time, you only need to review similar applications, add your judgment and the reasons for your disposition," said Alice, feeling that her Vice Minister was likely not well adapted yet or perhaps was played by those "Vice Ministers" unfamiliar with the work.

Wang Yucái bowed his head in acknowledgment and returned to his office, where he indeed saw another funding request from the intelligence department.

This funding application was interesting: the one from the Industry and Construction Department was very detailed, listing all the places where money would be used, and the appeal for funds was justified. After his review, Wang Yucái took the risk and seconded the approval.

He was a bit worried about problems with his own work, which is why he personally delivered it to Alice, and as it turned out, Alice also agreed to the application for the funds.

The funding request from the Imperial Security Bureau, however, was interesting: it was vague and almost did not mention the specific use of the funds, simply requesting an expenditure of 75 million.

Wang Yucái from the Ministry of Revenue of the Dahua Empire became sensitive at once: compared to the dedicated Industry and Construction Department, the Imperial Security Bureau was a classic negative example: asking for so much money without specifying the purpose, are you, Imperial Security Bureau, joking?

Wang Yucái, feeling as if he had caught a big fish, disregarded Alice’s earlier reminder and once again brought the application from the Imperial Security Bureau to Alice’s office.

He believed that this time, Alice would surely explode with anger, chastise the Imperial Security Bureau, and reject the application.

The reality proved him wrong again: Alice told him to grant whatever amount the intelligence department needed... It was only at this moment that Wang Yucái finally understood how the upper and lower ranks of the Dahua Empire had been corrupted and destroyed.

Using the national defense budget of the Dahua Empire for bribery and infiltration, the intelligence personnel of the Great Tang Empire permeated the Dahua Empire, which was actually consequential and to be expected...

Meanwhile, in another office, Chen Jing had already gone mad: he deliberately expanded the scale of the Beiyuan City port’s expansion, arguing that the Great Tang Empire indeed intended to build and lay solid groundwork for a series of future northern activities.

Chen Jing considered that, since there was intent to expand, it would be better to go straight to the optimal scale and connect it with a railway from Beiyuan City to Pingning.

This will put pressure on the original budget, so Parker decided to apply for an additional 150 million in funding. Chen Jing really did not expect such a huge investment to be approved just like that.

Even, he noticed that his boss Parker did not show any particularly joyful expression when he heard the news.

In the Dahua Empire, if the state allocated funds to the Ministry of Works, everyone in the ministry would be thrilled. Because this meant that there were many more opportunities for underhanded gains, and everyone would reap substantial benefits, making a fortune overnight.

However, in the Great Tang Empire, it seems that the increase of substantial funds is not a cause for excitement: it’s just routine work, and this money can only be used for the project.

Chu Muzhou was actually surprised as well; he familiarized himself with the work of the Imperial Chancellor together with Roger, only to desperately find that the Chancellor of the Tang Empire seems to be just a mascot.

Roger has always been focused on the agricultural work, and seldom interferes with other matters; rather than being a Chancellor, he’s more like a Minister of Agriculture.

"Is it mandated that the Prime Minister has only these responsibilities?" Chu Muzhou felt he somewhat understood why Tang Mo dared to give him the position of Vice Chancellor.

Hearing Chu Muzhou’s question, Roger was somewhat embarrassed: "I don’t have a brilliant mind and am not very good at management, so I simply stopped dealing with those things and just focus on the agricultural production of the empire... We can’t let the people go hungry, right?"

Chu Muzhou was startled; he did not expect Roger to speak so straightforwardly. In fact, after hearing these words, Chu Muzhou started to look at Roger in a new light.

A person who can recognize their own shortcomings and avoid them, playing their role in the right position, is already proving themselves to be smart.

Throughout the ages, how many fools who consider themselves to be smart people exist? At this moment, Chu Muzhou suddenly somewhat understood why this Roger, could sit so firmly in the Chancellor’s position.

Suddenly, Chu Muzhou recalled what Tang Mo had said to him a few days ago: "Please help Roger out, I’m counting on you.’

At that moment, Chu Muzhou even felt a bit envious of the Roger before him: he had gained the Emperor’s trust, and even made the Emperor say words like "help Roger out."

For a Prime Minister with weaknesses in abilities, yet the Emperor would rather find a Vice Prime Minister to assist him than to replace him—what an honor that is?

"If I were to get involved with finance, construction..." After some thought, Chu Muzhou cautiously tested the waters with a question.

"Of course, I could learn from the side, to see how Vice Chancellor Chu handles various governmental affairs," Roger said with a smile.

"Won’t this cause dissatisfaction among the departments below? After all, before..." Chu Muzhou felt that since the other party was honest with him, it might be better to speak his mind openly.

"No, that won’t happen. If Vice Chancellor Chu feels it’s inappropriate, you can use my name. His Majesty has already granted me the authority, except that I was afraid of causing trouble, so I never used it." Roger said, "We can abstain from giving opinions, just to understand the work of the various departments, consider it supervision."

Hearing that Roger was willing to let Chu Muzhou inquire about other governmental affairs in the name of the Chancellor, he truly felt the vast difference between the court of the Great Tang Empire and that of the Dahua Empire.

The court of the Great Tang Empire is "plain and simple," but it almost has no infighting. Work is just work, everyone collaborates with one another, completely devoid of the infighting and cutthroat competition for power and profit present in the Dahua Empire.

This made Chu Muzhou extremely relaxed, even giving him an exhilarating sense of "reviving like a parched tree in spring." It seems, after waiting for most of his life, he finally got an opportunity, where he could fulfill his political ambitions, manipulating the entire national machinery as if it was an extension of his own body!

In the Foreign Affairs Department office, Nangong Hong sat with a look of dejection, contemplating his new deputy, Jiang Run. He could be said to be the most disappointed person in this "official replenishment."

He had thought that the position of Vice Chancellor belonged to him, but the arrival of Chu Muzhou took away his "strategist" status: frankly speaking, when it comes to abilities, the rustic Nangong Hong is indeed less competent than the old-school court heavyweight Chu Muzhou.

Therefore, while Nangong Hong felt upset, he couldn’t vent his frustrations: the other party truly was a more suitable choice, and he couldn’t deny that.

Thus, he could only suppress his grievances and proceeded to indoctrinate Jiang Run with the basics of the Empire’s foreign policy: "Remember! We never compromise! If the other side can’t meet our demands... then we can hand the work over to the Staff Department!"