Chapter 196: Severe Handling

The task of forming the provisional cabinet government was left to Grand Duke Serrano and Cánovas, while what concerned Gao Da at this moment was the handling of the rebellious nobles.

There was nothing to discuss regarding these rebellious nobles; the natural course of action was the perfect procedure of stripping them of their titles, confiscating all their property, executing the ringleaders, and imprisoning the accomplices.

However, since nearly a hundred nobles were being dealt with, including high-ranking nobles such as dukes and marquesses, it was still necessary to stabilize the sentiments of the other nobles.

At the very least, one could not incite panic throughout the entire noble class, as the subsequent governance of Spain would still require the efforts of the noble class.

It is worth mentioning that the reason the rebellious nobles used to guide the workers' protests was the exploitation of workers by capital, which also caused the contradiction between the noble class and the capitalist class to deepen further.

For Gao Da, this was actually good news. The landed nobles of Spain would eventually become history; the nobles of the future would participate more in finance and industry, which meant forming a new force of capital.

And it would be difficult for noble capital and private capital to join forces after this rebellion. Letting noble capital and private capital confront each other would not only effectively limit the power of the capitalist class but also allow the royal family to become the arbiter between the two forces.

As long as the balance is maintained well, future nobles and capitalists would both become aids to the royal family. As the arbiter between the two types of capital, the royal family could even further improve its relationship with the workers.

A monarchical government supported by the working class and the peasant class—one might ask, how could such a war be lost?

At noon on November 7, the Spanish government first sealed off the factories involved in the news reports regarding the exploitation of workers and the withholding of workers' wages, and allocated funds to pay all the wages of the workers in those factories in full.

When government officials distributed the wages, they specifically mentioned that the full payment of wages was Gao Da's order. This move immediately made the originally tense workers overjoyed, and they were also filled with gratitude toward their King, Gao Da.

For those workers who were injured during the protests, Gao Da also stated that he would provide them with free medical assistance. Although nominally this money would come from the royal family and the government, in reality, the small change from the confiscated property of the nobles and officials was enough.

The reason for covering the medical expenses of the injured workers was also to bridge the rift between the government and the workers caused by the armed conflict during the protests.

Regardless of what the workers' purpose for the protest was at the beginning, when they exchanged fire with the police, a rift or even hostility between them was inevitable.

Gao Da could only try his best to repair such a rift and shift the workers' hatred toward the government onto the capitalists and the Bourbon family who instigated the rebellion.

While Gao Da was pacifying the public through various means, the *Sun* and the *National Daily* announced the cause of this civil unrest through news reports, and identified the culprits as the Bourbon family who triggered this rebellion and the capitalists who withheld workers' wages.

The workers also very much needed a reason to shirk their responsibility; regardless of what their purpose was, the large-scale protests and armed conflicts were indeed caused by them.

In this way, the workers' hatred was successfully shifted onto the Bourbon family and the capitalists, and there was no blame toward the government.

Even if there were significant conflicts between the police and the workers, that was also due to the Bourbon family's fanning of the flames and the capitalists' withholding of wages.

If the capitalists had not withheld the workers' wages, and if the Bourbon family had not instigated this protest, then none of this would have happened.

Under the guidance of this public opinion, the Bourbon family quickly became a target of universal condemnation in Spain, and the hope of the Bourbon family for a restoration was completely shattered.

At least for the next 50 years, the workers and peasants of Spain would firmly remember the harm caused to the Spanish government and the public by the Bourbon family's instigation of this civil unrest.

With nearly a thousand casualties among the police and worker groups combined, the vast majority of this hatred was shifted onto the Bourbon family.

Of course, some capitalists also ended up as scapegoats. Although they did not participate in this incident, because of the extreme anger of the workers, many factories were still destroyed by the workers, suffering heavy losses.

Regarding all this, Gao Da could only say sorry to them in his heart. However, although they were relatively innocent and caught up in this incident, if they had never withheld workers' wages or exploited workers, how would the workers' anger have shifted onto them?

After resolving the impact of this workers' protest, Gao Da immediately began to deal with these rebellious nobles and the officials involved in the incident.

In order to avoid panic within the nobility, it was very necessary to set a scope before purging these nobles and officials.

Gao Da had notified Duke Jacob as early as when he returned to Spain, requesting him to notify all the nobles of the Royal Council to attend a meeting to discuss the handling of the rebellious nobles and to pacify the other nobles.

Duke Jacob naturally obeyed and did so, notifying almost all the nobles of the Royal Council he could reach, and requesting them to come to Spain as soon as possible to attend the meeting.

The time for the meeting was set for the morning of November 9; as long as the nobles were on the Spanish mainland, there was plenty of time to attend this meeting.

There was no need to notify the nobles who were far away overseas, but the results of the meeting would still be made public to all the nobles, so that those who did not participate in this rebellion could be completely at ease.

On the morning of November 9, the meeting of the Royal Council officially began.

This meeting gathered the vast majority of Spain's nobles, including dozens of high-status Grand Dukes, hundreds of nobles with long histories and noble status, and a large number of marquesses and counts.

Barons were completely ignored in such a meeting venue; they could only sit in the very corner of the meeting, only able to listen, with no qualification to speak.

The number of nobles in Spain was extremely large. Even though nearly a hundred nobles rebelled this time, the number of other nobles in Spain who were not affected still reached nearly a thousand.

And the total number of nobles attending this meeting was a full 600; the land held by these 600 people was more than the land held by the Spanish peasants.

It is no exaggeration to say that the property owned by these people in the venue was more than the property owned by everyone else in Spain outside the meeting venue.

This was also the best embodiment of a country's wealth always being concentrated in the hands of a few; as a class that only had about a thousand people at its peak, the wealth mastered by the Spanish nobles was immeasurable by ordinary people.

Even the inconspicuous barons in the meeting—the wealth in their hands was not eye-catching compared to other nobles, but to commoners, it was wealth that a family could not earn in a lifetime.

Around 8: 0, as a group of guards lined up outside the meeting venue, Gao Da also officially arrived at the meeting venue.

Accompanied by Grand Duke Serrano, Count Cánovas, Duke Jacob, and others, Gao Da walked straight to the center of the meeting venue.

There was a large podium nearly a meter higher than the ground, and the things Gao Da wanted to mention in the meeting had already been placed on the podium.

After walking onto the podium, Gao Da did not rush to speak, but scanned all the nobles with a calm gaze. After most people nervously lowered their heads, Gao Da then slowly said: "

Gentlemen, a major event that shocked everyone has occurred in Spain recently. Among the nobles I trusted, some betrayed me; they wanted to unite with the Bourbon family to overthrow my rule.

In order to oppose me, they did not hesitate to incite a workers' protest involving tens of thousands of people, and triggered a conflict between the workers and the government.

This incident caused immeasurable losses to Spain and further intensified the public's suspicion and hostility toward the government.

It is simply unimaginable that there are such vermin and scum among the noble class I trusted. If this incident had not happened, how much longer would they have lurked among you?

Please tell me, the nobles I trusted, are you still loyal to me?"

"Willing to shed the last drop of blood for Your Majesty." Grand Duke Serrano stood up in time and shouted his oath loudly.

The other nobles were not stupid either, and they followed Grand Duke Serrano and shouted loudly.

Gao Da nodded, a smile appeared on his face, and he said: "Of course I trust you, gentlemen. This incident was just an accident, but it allowed us to discover some vermin and scum existing among the nobles.

As long as they are cleared out, the noble class will still be trusted by me, and of course, they are an indispensable existence in this country.

Now, let us discuss how to deal with these vermin and scum. And how to prevent such vermin and scum from appearing again, letting them destroy the prestige and status of the entire noble class."

Among the plans for dealing with these rebellious nobles, most had already been determined. For example, their titles would be stripped, their property would be confiscated, and so on.

What these nobles were asked to discuss was the handling of these rebellious nobles. Whether to execute or imprison, who to execute, and who to imprison—all needed to be decided by these nobles through voting.

The reason for letting these nobles participate in the voting was to let them see the consequences of resisting Gao Da's rule. Gao Da certainly trusted the noble class and was willing to reuse the noble class.

But the premise of all this was that the Spanish nobles were willing to submit to Gao Da's rule, and they had to maintain loyalty to Gao Da.

Many nobles also understood this point, so in the subsequent voting, they chose to deal with these rebellious nobles severely.

Anyway, Gao Da had already set a tone before the meeting started, which was that these rebellious nobles were just vermin and scourges among the nobles, and they did not represent the noble class itself.

This also meant that the liquidation of the rebellious nobles would not affect other nobles. As long as the nobles did not participate in this rebellion, they were safe and would not be affected in the slightest.

The final voting result made Gao Da very satisfied.

More than 600 nobles attended this meeting, and the vast majority of them agreed to severe punishment. Most of the rest also gave up their voting rights; after all, the relationships between nobles were intricate, and it was quite normal for them to be relatives.

After receiving the final voting result, there was no change in expression on Gao Da's face, and he said as if he didn't care: "Alright, according to everyone's voting results, the punishment for these rebellious nobles will be handled severely.

Since that is the case, I, as the King of Spain, announce the abolition of the titles of all nobles and their families who participated in the rebellion, the confiscation of all property of the rebellious nobles and their families, and the imprisonment of all rebellious nobles and their families.

The nobles who personally participated in this rebellion will all be sentenced to death, and they will be executed in different ways. Their families will be imprisoned for life; unless they make major contributions to the country and the royal family, their titles shall not be restored, nor shall they be released.

I hope you can remember this lesson, remember this lesson that caused serious damage to the hope and status of the noble class.

Spain needs the power of the noble class, but it does not need the vermin and scourges among them. I hope the Royal Council can strengthen the supervision of all nobles to prevent such cases from continuing to appear in the noble class in the future.

In addition, I plan to reorganize the Royal Council and merge it with the Spanish Senate to form the Royal Senate, with the House of Representatives as the upper and lower houses of Spain. I wonder what your opinions are?"

If the severe handling of the rebellious nobles was a big stick aimed at the noble class, then the choice to reorganize the Royal Council and merge it into the Senate was a candy for the noble class.

The previous Royal Council did not belong to the Spanish Parliament, but was an organizational institution established by Gao Da to supervise the noble class.

Except for supervising the noble class, the Royal Council did not have any power; the nobles who joined the Royal Council were instead subject to supervision, and there were no other benefits besides that.

And after merging into the Senate, these nobles who joined the Royal Council would become members of the Royal Senate.

Although it was impossible for all these 600-plus nobles to become members of the Senate, this also meant that a considerable number of nobles would join the Senate.

Although the power of the Senate in the upper and lower houses was not that great, that also depended on who it was compared with.

The Spanish Senate after merging with the Royal Council would certainly have more power than the previous Senate. Gao Da's merger of the Senate and the Royal Council was not without reason; the purpose was precisely to use the Royal Senate to check and balance the House of Representatives.

The Prime Minister of Spain was elected by the House of Representatives, and most members of the cabinet were appointed by the Prime Minister. The cabinet government was responsible to the House of Representatives, which made the power of the House of Representatives grow infinitely; the political party controlling the House of Representatives could even influence the cabinet government to an unlimited degree.

This was something Gao Da was unwilling to see. Not everyone who held power was like Prime Minister Primo, who was not greedy for power; many people would be blinded by interests and eventually embark on the path of hollowing out the King or even dictatorship.

To avoid this situation, using the Senate to check and balance the House of Representatives was a very good method.

The House of Representatives had legislative power, but the Senate could reject the legislative power of the House of Representatives. Moreover, the Senate had the power to supervise officials, and even the Prime Minister was under the supervision of the House of Representatives.

Even the power to impeach officials and the Prime Minister belonged to the Senate, which to a large extent could ensure that the Senate could check and balance the House of Representatives.

After the Senate and the Royal Council merged, the nobles would become the majority in the Senate. And the nobles were obedient to Gao Da, which also meant that Gao Da would directly control the Spanish Senate.

By virtue of Spain's regulations during the Prime Minister election, once no one could obtain the majority of votes, the Senate would join in the election of the Prime Minister.

This also meant that in the future, Gao Da would also have a great say in the election of the Spanish Prime Minister. Combined with a certain amount of military power, it could ensure that the Spanish royal power could be passed down for many generations on the basis of having a certain amount of power.

As Gao Da expected, upon hearing that Gao Da wanted to merge the Senate and the Royal Council, many nobles showed expressions of joy.

If a portion of the nobles could become senators, this also meant that the power of the noble class would be strengthened. Although such power was far from comparable to the period of noble privilege, it was still a significant improvement compared to before.

More importantly, after the nobles entered the Senate, they could reject some proposals that harmed the interests of the nobles through joint efforts, instead of being helpless after the government proposed some policies as before.

This was also the true intention of Gao Da giving this candy. The Senate did not have legislative power, and the nobles could not propose some proposals that were beneficial to themselves.

But because they had the power to reject bills, they could reject some proposals that were harmful to themselves. Doing so could not only ensure that the entire noble class had a certain influence and could be driven by the royal family, but also ensure that the nobles would not gain too much influence, thereby threatening the royal power.

It could even form a natural confrontation between the nobles and the House of Representatives, letting the nobles actively confront and check and balance the House of Representatives; it was simply killing two birds with one stone.

Seeing that some nobles were somewhat tempted, Gao Da then said: "Regarding the merger of the Senate and the Royal Council, it is just an idea of mine.

At present, the parliament has been dissolved, so there is enough time to think about this problem. If any of you have relevant thoughts and suggestions on the merger of the Senate and the Royal Council, you can also submit them to me.

Alright, the main purpose of today's meeting has been completed. I hope you can all think carefully about the lessons brought by this incident to avoid the recurrence of this incident.

Gentlemen, the stability of the country needs the support of all of you. I hope all nobles can contribute their efforts; for the stability and peace of Spain, and to realize the dream of making Spain great again, let us work hard together.

If there are any additional clues about the rebellious nobles, they can also be submitted to Director Kadier. After this incident, Spain will enter a new chapter, and I do not want any more accidents to happen.

Alright, gentlemen, the meeting is over, everyone dismissed."

After saying all his words, Gao Da walked out of the venue first, and Grand Duke Serrano and Cánovas behind him hurriedly followed.

At the end was a line of guards, respectfully following their King back to the palace, leaving only the nobles with different expressions in the venue still discussing in low voices.

5000-word two-in-one chapter, please support!





(End of chapter)