Chapter 907
Chapter 907 - 893: Serious Business?
1,578 words
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8 min read
"Go to the Special Service Team for work? Hmm, that’s not necessary. If there’s any serious trouble, they’ll contact me..."
Lu Ping’an, after all, still held the titles of a regular member of Special Service Team Three and the Captain of Team 1 in the newly developed area.
But in reality, no one really expected him to show up for work.
On the contrary, if he suddenly appeared, it would cause unease among those actually working hard, giving them the impression that "something big must have happened for this guy to show up."
"Report to school? That’s worth considering. No matter what, I did complete their commission to lead a team before, and I should get some form of compensation for that. At the very least, they should consider my academic credits... Wait, my attendance seems severely lacking. I won’t be denied my degree certificate, will I?"
This aspect felt a bit tricky.
And it was indeed possible for it to become a reality. Even within the relatively relaxed supernatural campus, Lu Ping’an’s attendance was astoundingly poor.
While others might have "missed a few days" or "skipped a few classes in a semester," his record was "how many times he had attended this semester" and "Teacher, do we have a student named Lu Ping’an in our class?" "No, dear, and pretty soon there really won’t be, dear."
It’s likely that some teachers, who had already memorized this "honor student" who hadn’t attended even one class, were eagerly looking forward to giving him an agreeably high score on his final exam.
"... Looking at the time, it’s almost the end of the semester, right? Huh, seems like I haven’t gone at all next semester."
Lu Ping’an sighed helplessly. Being expelled didn’t really bother him, but his parents might think otherwise... The last time he was home, the entire village knew that the Lu family had produced a brilliant student who easily got into Ancient City University and even became the student council’s Vice Chairman.
Huh, why Vice Chairman? Probably the same reason why each job-seeking season, prospective employees’ resumes magically fill with numerous titles of Deputy Director or Vice Chairman—it’s easy to boast about a deputy position, and it’s not easy to verify...
𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮
"Call Director Qian? Or, to be more straightforward, chat with the Director of the Bureau of Anomaly Management?"
As a student, the methods Lu Ping’an was considering to resolve his attendance issue were a bit over the top... But truth be told, there was a high chance of getting rejected by an academic advisor, yet if he approached the Bureau of Anomaly Management, the likelihood of success was frighteningly high.
But if he actually went to the Bureau of Anomaly Management, it naturally wouldn’t be for something as trivial as his own attendance.
"... I’ll draft a proposal. Let’s consider the long-term treatments of explorers in academics and local business affairs."
Just a few days ago, Lu Ping’an acquired a new identity as a member of the Ancient City city council.
He was elected through a (potential internal election within the) Special Service Team, theoretically granting him the authority to directly submit legislative proposals and question regulations to the government.
Of course, whether they listen or simply regard it as waste paper depends on your own capability.
Although not mentioned before, due to the administrative system of the Eastern Country being made up of state parliaments formed by different states, local governments at all levels have corresponding lower-level assemblies affiliated with the joint parliaments.
However, if every level of assembly were to be launched, it would only be about election matters, significantly increasing administrative costs while leaving very little in terms of local administrative efficiency.
Therefore, at the local level, the assembly is actually a nominal and part-time position, typically composed of social figures, leaders of various agencies, and big company bosses—"a retirement home" in nature. In theory, it’s based on internal elections and regional elections, but those in the know understand how it works.
The city council itself is also a bit delicate. In theory, they have the highest authority, being a subordinate agency to the state parliament and a subordinated directly-managed agency of the joint parliament of the states. But in reality, they only make their presence felt at year-end summaries, after all, the closing ceremonies still have to be broadcasted on TV to show that the assembly exists.
Lu Ping’an did not participate in any election. To be precise, he hardly had any basic election experience as he had just come of age, but suddenly he became a person of repute in the industry and was urgently elected into the assembly through a by-election.
Consequently, he enjoyed a delightful life where, although sans extra allowances or benefits, he could roam the government offices at will, occasionally write some proposals for media exposure, and give the municipal government a bit of a hard time.
Clearly, this was Ancient City’s way of ensuring he wouldn’t run off... they had casually dragged him into the decision-making layer, using any excuse they could find. Though it was just a nominal title, their sincerity was more than enough.
After all, if anything urgent came up, he now had a title for seeking solutions, rather than being the average citizen Lu XX.
In the current delicate situation, if he really presented his proposal and it addressed issues that truly existed, like those faced by Explorers such as Lu Ping’an, there was a good chance it might actually pass and then become an official document of the municipal government (after internal deliberation).
It is evident, then, that if the Official review doesn’t approve, a proposal from the city council is nothing but waste paper. However, if the proposer has the ability to make the municipal government nod in agreement, then this council member’s title might not be purely nominal... Big Bosses like Kun Ba seem to hold honorary titles in the local city council as well, and when they really do propose something, at the very least, it still has to go through the motions at the meeting table.
Lu Ping’an had no interest in politics, but it was nonetheless a convention for new councilmembers to submit "homework."
After some thought, he still tried drafting a proposal, coinciding with the mid-year session of the council, as if to complete his newcomer task.
And once he actually set pen to paper earnestly, he finished in just a few moments; he thought it over and decided to draft a few other new proposals as well.
"Concerning the market access for professional goods, questions arise if ’college entrance examination sets’ and other overly effective Magic Potions could pass smoothly just under the supervision of food safety departments. We need to consider not only the efficacy of these potions but also their societal impact..."
When Lu Ping’an found out that those two Magic Potions had entered the market through "health food" channels, he was somewhat perplexed.
To avoid encountering various low-level Magic Potions at the snack shop downstairs in the future, he felt it necessary to write something, at least from the stance of a professional Explorer.
"Regarding the employment issues of foreigners, there has recently been one-third, or even one-fourth employment practices that are exploitative. I personally believe this extends beyond the bounds of normal benefit and will generate significant social risks..."
When salaries were at half, many turned a blind eye, but now, with many cases of foreigners injuring people on the Special Service Teams’ hands, the analysis shows that some people are genuinely treated as less than human... Holding onto one-fourth of a salary was still somewhat tolerable for Lu Ping’an, but in some places, laborers were treated virtually like animals, short of being leashed.
And it’s not to say that Lu Ping’an wasn’t well-informed; with just a brief search of local news, compared with the situations in the Foreign Domain, he uncovered a plethora of "developing problems."
As he wrote, he found himself composing perhaps too much, and upon reflection, it all seemed somewhat amateur... He hesitated, ready to discard it all to save himself the trouble, when Big Cat stopped him.
"Don’t throw it away."
"Why? Anyone could find problems if they looked. Others have seen them too. The proposal won’t make much difference, and they won’t take it seriously. Why should I bother causing trouble for myself?"
"... These things show you still care about this city. At least, you lean towards a side that values peace and orderly Order. It will be good for your psychological evaluation report."
Alright, Big Cat really understood everything; she just couldn’t be bothered to explain.
Hearing this, Lu Ping’an was taken aback. On second thought, it really did make sense.
"That might indeed be true..."
"If you don’t believe it, you can try. It’s quite possible that once you submit it, the Official side will find an excuse to reward you, to give you a bit of encouragement."
"Really? I can’t believe it. How can it be so realistic..."
So, he smiled and then truly submitted his "homework."
But the next day, he received commendation from the Bureau of Anomaly Management and verbal recognition from the Official side...
— End of Chapter 907 —