However, General Ji couldn’t wait any longer. He pointed at the desk and chair in his study and said, “Do it up right here and now. I will sign my approval the moment you are done.”
Huo Shaoheng did not reject the idea. He took out his phone and began typing the proposal.
Although there was a computer in General Ji’s home, Huo Shaoheng was not allowed to use it unless he was permitted to do so.
Moreover, in an era where smartphones were so common, it was obvious that a computer would not be necessary to complete something like typing a proposal.
General Ji had not said that Huo Shaoheng could use his computer, either. He thought that Huo Shaoheng should write it down by hand.
However, seeing that Huo Shaoheng was typing rather quickly on his phone, General Ji did not say anything more. He returned to the seat behind his desk in the study, turned on his computer, and began typing his memo.
If there was really something up Hong Kangquan’s sleeves, then they would have to be extremely well prepared and not leave anything out.
Before General Ji could finish typing his memo, Huo Shaoheng was already done with his proposal.
He sent the proposal to the printer in General Ji’s home before placing it in front of General Ji.
General Ji put on his glasses and looked through Huo Shaoheng’s proposal carefully. Then, he pointed to two spots and said, “Change this. Just be straightforward and say that he was clearly related to the near failure of the New York mission by the Special Forces and would therefore be required to be put under surveillance. Here as well, explain that this issue was related to Prime Minister Tan and his wife, Cai Songyin. Therefore, we do not have to seek his approval on this.”
Huo Shaoheng nodded and said humbly, “General Ji, you are very detailed.”
He then headed off to edit the two spots that General Ji had pointed out before printing three copies of the proposal and handing them to General Ji to sign.
General Ji signed all three copies and asked Huo Shaoheng to bring them over to Senior Speaker Long to get his approval.
After both of them had signed the documents, one copy would be kept with General Ji in the Military Supreme Council, another copy would be kept with Senior Speaker Long in the secretary’s office in the Senate, and Huo Shaoheng would keep the final copy in the Special Forces headquarters.
By the time General Ji had completed signing the documents, it was already three o’clock in the morning.
“Go ahead. Go and get Senior Speaker Long’s signature quickly.” General Ji could not wait any longer. He urged Huo Shaoheng to go and look for Senior Speaker Long as soon as possible.
Huo Shaoheng was not in a rush any longer. “General Ji, the Senate is not a good place for secrets. It cannot be compared to the army. I think it would be better if I were to look for Senior Speaker Long tomorrow when I go over to the Senate to check on the progress of the control center.”
General Ji contemplated in silence for a while before nodding in agreement. “You are right. The Senate cannot be compared to the army.” Then, he snorted. “I already told Old Long a long time ago that he had to instill some form of discipline in the Senate. However, he said that the Senate was a place for everyone to voice their opinions. He can disagree with your opinion, but he will definitely protect your right to speak. That was the reason why the Senate turned out to be the messiest department of the three organizations.”
One could say that the politicians in the Senate were representing too many beneficiaries. There were even foreign powers looking for ambassadors from the Senate.
As long as they abided by the law of the Hua Xia Empire, it was something that was acceptable.
The ideal Senate in Senior Speaker Long’s mind was a place where different people from all walks of life could co-exist.
In an organization like this, it would showcase what the entire country was like. There was still unity despite the differences.
They wouldn’t just protect the interests of the majority; they would protect the interests of the minorities as well.
Due to this belief, the people that he employed were all different.
There were people who were extremely capable and people who were incapable; there were elites, and there were those who were average. They were all given an equal opportunity to be in charge of important things. The most significant thing that Senior Speaker Long had achieved was that he had made it possible for people of such differences to work together.
As long as the person was employable, Senior Speaker Long would always manage to find a use for him or her.
In the three main organizations in the Hua Xia Empire, the army used discipline to convince people, the cabinet used law and order to persuade them, and the Senate won the hearts of people by being tolerant.
However, in an organization like that, it would be tough to keep secrets.
It would not be impossible, but the level of security could not compare to other organizations.
The reason why Senior Speaker Long had used tolerance to manage the entire Senate was that every single minister were enemies to a certain extent.
They had to fight for the interests of their area, and therefore would definitely have to sacrifice the citizens of other locations.
Knowing that Gu Nianzhi would be working in an environment like this, Huo Shaoheng did not feel too confident.
Was Gu Nianzhi working in the Senate truly a good opportunity?
…
Upon leaving General Ji’s living quarters, Huo Shaoheng did not return to Gu Nianzhi’s apartment or his headquarters. Instead, he headed directly to the Senate’s building.
It was already 4 o’clock in the morning by the time he had arrived at the car park of the Senate’s building. It was the darkest time before daybreak.
Huo Shaoheng took the proposal document in the envelope and got out of the car. He narrowed his eyes as he scanned the car park before walking towards the lift.
It was too early. Therefore, other than those in the makeshift control room used to oversee the election, there was no one else anywhere.
However, the lights were still on throughout the entire building.
Huo Shaoheng entered the makeshift control room, and the soldiers from the Special Forces who were on duty at that time stood up and saluted him. “Good morning, Sir.”
Huo Shaoheng raised his hand in acknowledgment. “Take a seat. Have you gotten any rest?”
The soldiers smiled. “There is still some work left to do. We will be able to sleep after this.”
Huo Shaoheng scanned the room and did not see Yin Shixiong. “Where is Big Xiong?”
“Lieutenant Yin went to get us breakfasts.” One of the soldiers on duty rubbed his stomach awkwardly.
His stomach growled embarrassingly at the mention of food.
Huo Shaoheng smiled. “Get busy. I will go and take a look at the system.”
He entered the small office inside and turned on the computer to test the connection speed and the streaming quality.
Time flew by as he started working.
Huo Shaoheng was not even halfway through checking the voting areas in the country when the skies became bright.
Yin Shixiong had returned with a delicious breakfast and was getting everyone to have some.
“Big Xiong, Huo Shao is here. He is in the small office inside.” One of the soldiers pointed at the small office.
Yin Shixiong took a bowl of beef porridge, a bag of beef buns, and an egg and entered the small office.
“Good morning Huo Shao. Please have some breakfast. The breakfast that this beef restaurant serves is not bad. Of course, it is not comparable to the chefs in our living quarters.” Yin Shixiong placed the breakfast items in front of Huo Shaoheng, smiling.
Huo Shaoheng was indeed hungry. He opened the food and began eating.
After he was done, Huo Shaoheng handed the envelope to Yin Shixiong. “Send this to Senior Speaker Long’s office for his signature. Get them to expedite it.”
Huo Shaoheng had used a standard envelope for this proposal because he did not want anyone to know that the document was special.
At the same time, he wanted to use this as an opportunity to see if there were any traitors in the Senate.
Yin Shixiong grabbed the envelope quickly. “I will go over there right now.”
Yin Shixiong took the envelope and headed to Senior Speaker Long’s office. However, he did not see Senior Speaker Long. There were only Special Assistant Yang and a couple of newly appointed Secretaries arranging some documents.
Seeing that Yin Shixiong was there, Special Assistant Yang welcomed him with a warm smile. “Lieutenant Yin, are you looking for Senior Speaker Long by any chance?”
“Yes I am. I need him to sign this document.” Yin Shixiong showed him the envelope. “Where is he?”
“He has gone for a meeting.” Special Assistant Yang nodded towards the meeting room. “The election is coming up soon. Senior Speaker Long is having online meetings with the staff from the election offices from all different areas to check on their progress.”
“There are so many, though, can he cope?” Yin Shixiong was astounded. “Sure, I will wait here for a while.”
He took a seat outside Senior Speaker Long’s office. However, after a while, the control room called him, asking him to head over to mediate a quarrel between them and the Secret Services.
Yin Shixiong was in a dilemma for a while. He contacted Huo Shaoheng to ask for permission before handing the envelope to Special Assistant Yang. “Special Assistant Yang, please give this to Senior Speaker Long for me. I will come and collect it after I am done with my errands.”
“No problem.” Special Assistant Yang checked the envelope and saw that it was sealed tightly before stamping the Senate’s official stamp on it in front of Yin Shixiong.
That way, when Senior Speaker Long received it, it would confirm that no one had opened the envelope before him.
After Yin Shixiong had left, Special Assistant Yang looked at the tightly sealed envelope with a smile. He called out to Gu Nianzhi, saying, “This is a document that was sent by the Special Forces. They need it to be signed by Senior Speaker Long. Send it over to him.”
However, Gu Nianzhi refused to take on the task. She pointed to her face still with a mask on and said, “Special Assistant Yang, how can I look for Senior Speaker Long when I am like this? Please get someone else to go instead.”
After she had left, Special Assistant Yang sighed and mumbled, “Since everyone is so busy, I have no other options then.” With that, he placed the envelope at the bottom of a stack of documents, all awaiting Senior Speaker Long’s signatures when he got back.
…
At the same time, Cai Songyin was just about to bring her daughter, Tan Guiren, out to meet one of her close friends, Sun Yuerong.
The place that they had arranged to meet was a restaurant that had gotten three Michelin stars.
Cai Songyin and Tan Guiren reached the restaurant and saw that Sun Yuerong had already arrived.
Cai Songyin waved at her and smiled. “It has been quite a long time, Yuerong.”
“Yes, it has.” Sun Yuerong looked Tan Guiren over and nodded with a smile. “Guigui is becoming prettier.”
“She is still as childish as ever. I told her that I would bring her to learn from you so that after she gets married, she would be able to be like you and help her husband socialize a little.” Cai Songyin took the menu and ordered some dishes that Tan Guiren liked.
“Oh, really? Guigui should be getting engaged soon, shouldn’t she? I remember that you had taken a liking to Major General Huo? How was it? Did major general Huo ask for your hand in marriage already?” Sun Yuerong asked with a smile.
Tan Guiren blushed immediately and said quickly, “Auntie Sun, I do not have anything to do with Major General Huo. How could he come and ask my parents for my hand in marriage just like that? Please do not talk, anyhow.”
Sun Yuerong laughed. “Guigui is so shy. Alright then, Auntie Sun shall not say anymore.”
She changed the topic and began gossiping with Cai Songyin. They talked about one of the launches by a big brand first, then moved on to a new celebrity that had just begun his career in the entertainment industry. They talked about everything under the sun.
After listening in for a while, Tan Guiren felt extremely bored. She looked at the girl who was playing piano in the restaurant and began spacing out.
Seeing Tan Guiren like that, Cai Songyin brought her to one side. “Guigui, there is a shopping mall beside this restaurant. Go and take a look, see if there are any new arrivals in the men’s section, will you? I need to buy some new clothes for your father. Could you do me this favor?”
“Sure, my pleasure.” Tan Guiren left happily and headed off to shop at the mall.
After Tan Guiren had left, Cai Songyin’s expression became serious. She slipped a thumb drive into the hands of Sun Yuerong and lowered her head to take a small mouth of her porridge as though nothing had happened. “Give this to your husband and get him to help,” she whispered.
