monarch

When the king walked into the parliament hall, there was an embarrassing silence in the entire chamber.

The king paused at the door of the hall. He raised his head and glanced at the parliamentarians on the seats on both sides. They all stood up and bowed to the king.

The king went straight up to the speaker, took off his hat, and the speaker saluted the king.

The king turned to the councilors and said, "Gentlemen, forgive me for offending you and the prerogatives of this institution, but I will not detain you long."

He turned to the speaker again, "Your Excellency, please allow me to borrow your seat for the time being."

The speaker hurriedly stepped aside.

The king walked to the speaker's seat and sat down. He looked around at the congressmen in the hall. They were like a group of schoolchildren who had made a mistake and were brought before the teacher. They lowered their heads and did not dare to look directly at the king.

"Which one is Mr. William Britt?" The king's voice was very calm, in stark contrast to his piercing eyes.

Immediately there was a commotion from one corner of the hall, and the nearby councilors fled around, leaving poor Mr. Britt sitting there trembling and alone, as if he had some dangerous contagious disease. generally.

Edward looked at Mr. Britt: the man looked to be in his forties, with two small mung bean-like eyes and a huge hooked nose on his fat face, and his thinning hair drooping on his forehead. It looks like a wig.The congressman couldn't stand up at this time, and slumped on his chair, like a slug sucked on the bottom of the sea.

"You are Mr. Britt, the Councilor of St. Giles District?" Although the king had a vague smile on his face, in Mr. Britt's eyes, he looked like a lion about to bite off the neck of its prey.He looked pale.

"Mr. Britt, your king is speaking to you!" Robert, standing behind the king, reprimanded Mr. Britt in a loud voice.

Mr. Britt put his hands on the armrests and tried to stand up, but the moment his butt left the seat, his legs gave way and collapsed to the ground like a puddle of mud.

"Your Majesty..." Mr. Britt stammered, the forced smile on his face looked a bit nervous, his face was distorted by fear, it looked like a wax that was melting due to high temperature Mask, "I am honored to meet Your Majesty..."

Beads of sweat flowed from the roots of his hair, flowing wantonly on that fat face, like a river bursting its embankment after a summer rainstorm.

"How did you get elected as an MP?" the king asked with a smile on his face.

"Mr. Britt is the largest real estate developer in the Eastern District, Your Majesty." The Speaker tried to relieve Mr. Britt.

"Ah, so that's the case." The king patted the handrail of the speaker's seat slightly with his hand, "Then surely many of the slum houses that were reduced to ashes in the fire last night are your property?"

"Yes... Your Majesty." Mr. Britt's face was ashen with fear.

"You can't wait, you already sent people to your living tenants this morning to demand compensation for their losses?" The king turned his head and looked at Robert, "How much does Mr. Britt demand for each house? "

"Twenty pounds, Your Majesty."

"Mr. Britt, how much does it cost you to build a house like this?" the king then asked.

Mr. Britt had completely lost the ability to speak, and there was an inhuman whine in his throat.

"If you don't remember well, I'll send for your treasurer."

Mr Britt looked hopelessly at the king. "About . . . five pounds, Your Majesty."

"So why do you want twenty pounds from poor souls who have lost everything? Does it mean that, as a sensible businessman, you see an opportunity in this calamity that has befallen the country, and you intend to make money from this disaster?" From the ashes of the fire a bit of melted gold is pulled, is it not?"

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!" Mr. Britt leaned over and threw himself on the ground, "I was temporarily obsessed, please forgive me!"

"Are you begging me?" The King stood up and went up to Mr. Britt.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Mr. Britt crawled forward like a fat crocodile, trying to kiss the king's feet, but the king avoided him in disgust. "I beg you to be merciful...I don't dare anymore...I will donate all the land...to those poor people in the Eastern District, please forgive me!"

"What do you answer when those who cannot afford your twenty pounds entreat you?"

Mr. Britt curled up on the floor and wept.

"Mr. Britt had his thugs break their legs and take what was left of their belongings," said Robert impassively behind the king.

"Since you are not willing to give grace to others, why do you think others will give you grace?" The king turned around, walked back to the speaker's seat and sat down, pointing to Mr. Britt who was still prostrate on the ground, "put him to the Tower of London."

Two guards dragged Mr. Britt, who was unable to walk, through the gate, his wailing echoing in the hallway.

The councilors were silent one by one, for fear that the king would notice them.

The speaker bit his lip, he stepped forward, and bowed to the king again, "Your Majesty, please allow me to remind you..." He said with some timidity, "Mr. sacrosanct, and the act of arresting him was legally ... not lawful."

"What Mr. Britt has done has sullied the dignity of Parliament." The king replied coldly, "Does he have the right to be considered a member of this institution?" put your head down.

"You are right, Your Majesty." The speaker finally stopped insisting, he bowed again, and the parliament surrendered to the monarch.

The King nodded to him, expressing his satisfaction at the Speaker's knowledge.

"My lords and gentlemen," said the King, addressing the whole of Parliament, "this chaos caused by the so-called Clarendon Act has pushed the country to the brink of control. As a monarch, I have no intention of interfering with your legislation. Right, yet for the past few months, the institution has been semi-paralyzed."

"When the whole country is in chaos because of your actions, you are still busy with political battles. This hall is full of nonsense attacks by partisans and dissidents, while outside, the country is bleeding because of your inaction!"

"After last night's tragedy, what are you doing? Not busy saving those affected people, but still indulging in your boring political games. This can't help but lead me to conclude that your insensitivity and insensitivity, It has reached an unbearable level!"

"So, today, as a king, I can only leave the parliament that is supposed to be a bridge between me and the people, walk among them, and talk to my subjects in person."

"They told me that they longed for peace, longed for tranquility, longed for fair and just treatment. Parliament should be their representatives, but you have failed them."

"So, today I want to stand up and speak out for them. Standing here, I not only represent my will, but also the will of the people, the will of the entire country!"

"This chaos should be put to an end." The king waved his hand, and a group of attendants walked in from outside the gate. They all held a large stack of documents in their hands, and these documents were distributed to the hands of each member of parliament.

"The document you are holding now is called the "Religious Freedom Act," the king also took a copy of the same document in his hand. Find a balance between interests."

"Catholics will enjoy the freedom to practice their religion and hold public office, but the property of the Catholic Church will not be returned. Henceforth, all religious persecution will be illegal and will be regarded as treason and will be punished with the most severe punishment. punish."

"I'll give you 10 minutes to read it," the king turned to the speaker again, "after that, please start voting."

The Lord Protector has been silent since the beginning, and at this moment he finally stood up, "Your Majesty, let alone whether your request is in compliance with the law, such a far-reaching bill needs to be fully discussed. The legislative process will take at least several months."

"The country cannot wait for months." The king did not flinch.

"Then, as the leader of your Regency Council, I can only regret to inform you that the Regency Council cannot support your move." The Lord Protector bowed deeply, as if saluting an opponent before a duel generally.

Are you finally going to tear your face off?Edward looked at Bishop Gardner, who was sitting on the other side. The bishop had a somewhat embarrassed smile on his face. Obviously, he stood with the Lord Protector on this matter. As a member of the Regency Council, the bishop naturally wanted to Maintain the authority of the Regency Council, otherwise this so-called regency will only exist in name only.

"Then, according to my father's will, this will be submitted to the parliament for a vote." The king replied indifferently, not caring about the vague threat of the Lord Protector.

"Unfortunately, Your Majesty." The speaker seemed to have regained a little courage from the Lord Protector's move, "What you are asking for is impossible. A bill must first go through the first, second and third readings of the parliament. Sufficient debate to give all MPs the fullest understanding of the implications of the bill before it can be brought up for a vote. As the Lord Protector has said, this process will take at least a month."

The king sat there without saying a word, his fingers tapping the lion statue on the arm of the chair, and looking as if he was about to back down.

When many people thought that the king would take a step back, the king finally spoke, "Your Excellency, if I remember correctly, there is a way to vote that skips these cumbersome procedures and directly passes a bill."

"You are right, Your Majesty." The speaker replied with some reluctance. "According to the ancient tradition, if all members shouted their approval and there were no objections, then the bill would be passed."

"Can I expect you to abandon your own and party's self-interest, put the country's interests first, and pass this bill unanimously?" The king looked around the crowd in the hall.

Members of Parliament, you look at me, I look at you, many people showed embarrassing expressions.

The Duke Protector sneered, the young king didn't know when to accept it, so he could only humiliate himself.

"I don't think you are aware of your situation." The king stood up abruptly, "There is not a single soldier between you and the people outside. You are still sitting here in safety only because I promised the people outside." People, I want you to pass a compromise bill. Some of you may say that I am impatient, but on the contrary, I am very patient with this, and people outside are not willing to wait any longer." He pointed to the window , "If you insist on going your own way, I'm afraid I won't be able to continue to protect you and this institution!"

As if responding to the king's words, another burst of cheers came from outside, "Long live His Majesty the King!"

"My God, what's the matter again?" the Speaker groaned.

Councilors flocked to the windows to observe the situation outside.

It was Mr. Britt who had just been escorted out of the Parliament gates in a prison wagon.As soon as the prison car drove out of the gate, stones and garbage flew towards the arrested congressman like raindrops. After a while, he was covered in blood and lay motionless in the prison car.

"God, is he still alive?" Some MPs asked softly, but most of them didn't say a word, just stared at the terrible scene with wide eyes, imagining what it would be like to be in Mr. Britt's place. What a nightmare.

When they returned to their seats, many people's faces were as white as paper, and they looked at the king more cowardly than before.These MPs finally realized that their lives were in the hands of the king.

The speaker wiped the sweat from his forehead, and he looked at Bishop Gardner, who seemed to have completely surrendered.

The speaker looked at the livid-faced Duke Protector again with pleading eyes, and the muscles on his purple-faced face were trembling.

After almost half a minute, Duke Protector finally nodded reluctantly.

The speaker let out a sigh of relief, "Members, at the request of His Majesty the King, now vote on the "Religious Freedom Bill". If everyone agrees, this bill will automatically become law. Those who agree, please say 'agree'! "

"Agreed!" the MPs scrambled to shout, and the shouts almost knocked off the roof of the Palace of Westminster.

"Is there any objection?" The speaker looked around.

The Lord Protector's lips parted slightly, looking like a goldfish bubbling in the water, but he remained silent in the end.

The speaker slammed the hammer on the table like a blacksmith forging steel, "Unanimous vote."

The MPs who were still mourning just now stood up and applauded His Majesty the King.Only a few members of the Regency Council sat dejectedly in their seats, looking as if they were 20 years older.

The king stood up, doffed his hat to them, and strode towards the exit of the hall.