Beating Instances through Words Left by the Dead

The large strike erupting in Grimland at this moment is the result of the Pine Tree Coal Mine explosion and the Sloan Textile Factory incident, as well as many previous worker movements combined.

This strike’s momentum is extremely strong, powerful enough to paralyze more than half of Grimland.

Even if Prime Minister Ron were alive, dealing with a strike of this magnitude would be headache-inducing, let alone Acting Prime Minister Glad.

Faced with this strike, Glad chose to throw out a red herring.

The Red Herring effect refers to over a hundred years ago when Stilan nobles trained hunting dogs to track foxes; they would place smoked herring meat, turned red, to distract the dogs, training them to resist foreign interference during a chase.

This metaphor has been extended to various occasions, meaning to use unrelated matters to divert focus and affect the target’s judgment.

The political and public relations domains are the most suitable places for red herrings.

The best way to quell a major public opinion crisis is not to solve the problem directly but to create another headline news story to divert public attention.

For instance, whenever shocking scandals break out, various celebrities scramble to come forward, offering outrageous revelations to attract the fire instead of the big figures.

The timeline of the Steam Phantom Plane, due to the absence of the internet, has limited information dissemination speed, so high-end operations like sacrificing officials to protect leaders are unworkable, but sacrificing pawns to protect leaders can still be done.

The red herring that Glad threw out was anti-Grain Laws.

One of the crucial reasons for the workers’ poverty and hunger is the high grain prices caused by the Grain Laws.

Discontent with the Grain Laws among the populace has existed for a long time, and protests against the Grain Laws preceded the Charter Movement.

If there is anything more important than the workers’ pursuit of political rights, it is the right to have enough food.

The anti-Grain Laws not only have a broad topic appeal but can also attract the workers’ attention; more importantly, Prime Minister Glad, as the current leader of the Liberal Party, supports the anti-Grain Laws more than Prime Minister Ron did.

Right now, it’s a perfect opportunity to use the workers’ rage to force the land aristocrats to compromise.

If the land aristocrats compromise, then the advancement of the anti-Grain Laws can greatly quell the workers’ anger and demonstrate to them that Acting Prime Minister Glad is concerned about their living conditions and is standing with them.

At that time, using the anti-Grain Laws as an entry point and giving a few speeches to pacify the workers will not be difficult.

Meanwhile, the implementation of the anti-Grain Laws can severely impact the land aristocrats, greatly reducing their influence in Stilan.

If the land aristocrats are unwilling to compromise, then that’s even better.

Glad can conveniently shift the conflict from between factories and workers to between land aristocrats and the common people.

You are all so miserable, yet these decadent land aristocrats are still indifferent, wanting to watch you starve to death with open eyes!

If the operation is handled properly, he will use the workers’ anger to harshly chop off one arm—or perhaps two—of the land aristocrats.

As a pureblood new aristocrat, Glad is very disdainful of the old aristocrats’ faces and covets their legislative power in the Upper House, wanting to incorporate it into the cabinet, but has never found the opportunity.

If the land aristocrats thwart the anti-Grain Laws, then reshaping the Upper House happens today.

From the moment the "Grain Law Repeal Agreement" card was played, the outcome was destined to be a double win for Glad, a single win twice.

The plan was full, but when implementing it, he did not feel any sense of major victory.

Regarding the "Grain Law Repeal Agreement," it passed in the Lower House with 427 votes in favor and 129 against.

On the day of the vote in the Upper House, the proposal also passed with an absolute majority of votes, and Queen Olivia did not object, signing the bill immediately after the vote, announcing the complete repeal of the Grain Law.

Glad’s card played smoothly; whether the Conservative Faction or the Upper House was unexpectedly cooperative, becoming almost the master instead of the guest and eager to take action.

This anomaly made Glad very uneasy, but given the circumstances, he had no other choice.

Thus, the long-term stagnant anti-Grain Laws movement easily passed in a tiger’s head, snake’s tail manner, as if all the previous resistance was a misunderstanding.

Wu Chang, as the Secret Security Minister, also participated in the advancement of the "Grain Law Repeal Agreement," and after voting in the Lower House Hall, he hurried away, boarding the Secret Security Department’s carriage.

Since this time was not an external investigation but an official trip, Booker took the identity of Raventon’s coachman.

Waiting in the carriage, Raventon saw Wu Chang get on and asked, "How did it turn out?"

Wu Chang said, "Passed by a large majority."

Raventon showed a pensive expression and said, "That group of old guys seems to be plotting something big."

The gradual accumulation does not happen overnight, but the large strike’s development to its current scale is evident to anyone with keen eyes that there are hidden manipulators behind it.

The quick compromise of the land aristocrats was foreseeable but without any struggle, no one expected.

Anomalies must have demons, and the land aristocrats must have intentions.

Wu Chang indifferently said, "Let them fiddle as they wish. Compared to those things, I’m more concerned about the dismantling result of the self-destructing cyborgs at Grimlan University."

He knocked on the carriage and said to Booker:

"Take us to Grimlan University."

On the voting day, three days had passed since the discovery of the Soul Weaving Machine.