Chapter 42

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Chapter 42: Anna’s Debut in Parliament

On Saturday, September 14th, during a routine session of the Prussian Parliament, Second Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Anna von Bismarck, was preparing to speak about Prussia’s industrialization and the annual budget amendments.

At 11:15 in the morning, the Cabinet Secretary signaled for Anna to enter the main hall to present her proposal.

"Get out, Bismarck! It’s not your turn to speak."

"Why is a little girl here to tell jokes in Parliament? Please step down."

"Take your proposals to kindergarten for kids to see. We don’t have time to teach you."

The Parliament was noisy with insults. The lawmakers threw away the proposals written by Anna or even at Anna. White papers flew everywhere as people on the tables urged Anna to leave.

Cabinet Secretary Schultz stood in the shadows, revealing a knowing smile. Anna was a newcomer, having just been appointed as the second secretary in the Ministry of Finance.

As the Cabinet Secretary, Baron Schultz was the leader of all government officials in the entire cabinet and even in all of Prussia. He needed to assert his authority and make Anna, this unruly child, learn to obey him.

Baron Schultz intentionally scheduled the agenda. He set Anna’s topic for discussion to start at 11:15 am, just before lunchtime when lawmakers were eager to eat and drink, thus they were in no mood to give Anna a fair hearing.

The lawmakers’ angry shouts grew louder, and some even began smashing glasses. A group of representatives, known for traditional Junker beliefs, yelled the loudest. They believed that a woman participating in politics was shameful and questioned if there were no men left in Prussia.

Anna remained unfazed, completely ignoring the lawmakers’ insults, and began to present her speech as if nothing had happened.

In secret, Cabinet Secretary Schultz was very surprised by the boldness of this new member of the cabinet, it exceeded his imagination.

"The current government of Prussia is in debt of 9.56 million pounds, with 8 million in long-term debt and 1.5 million in short-term debt. Our government’s financial income last year amounted to 2.7 million pounds, equivalent to the annual net profit of the Hohenzollern family. The ratio of debt to government income has exceeded three hundred percent."

"Go away! Bismarck, hurry up and leave! We don’t want to hear you speak."

"But I believe we can be optimistic about the debt situation. Prussia’s economic market has not fully flourished yet, with the comprehensive launch of the industrial revolution, government financial income will rise rapidly, and the debt issue will be easily resolved."

"Son of a Bitch! Bismarck, do you think we’re talking nonsense? We told you to leave but you didn’t hear!"

"Respected gentlemen of the assembly, in the first phase of Prussia’s industrialization – the Industrial Framework Construction Plan, I have detailed the use and flow of 1.5 million pounds, hoping to receive your support."

The lawmakers were shouting, and Anna shouted out her thoughts in a louder voice, at one point drowning out all the lawmakers, but was soon overwhelmed by more intense insults.

The situation was getting serious, the presiding officer, sitting high up, banged a small hammer wildly to calm everyone down, "Your shouting is about to lift the roof off, this is the parliament, not a market."

The presiding officer announced the start of the voting.

A big black sign was lifted up with disapproving and scornful glances. Out of 280 permanent members of the parliament, 259 opposed, and the rest abstained.

The abstainers were all from the military camp. The military had a good relationship with the prince regent. Since Anna was a trusted aide of the prince regent, the military wouldn’t make things too difficult for her.

At that moment, Cabinet Secretary Schultz stepped onto the stage and announced that the mid-year budget revision proposed by the Ministry of Finance did not pass. The meeting was now adjourned.

As the members of parliament exited, grumbling, they passed by a staircase in front of which Anna stood behind a small table. They shook their fists at Anna and left behind "beautiful words."

Some of the rough-mannered Germans had low manners. One of them spat thick phlegm onto the expensive carpet, making it difficult for the cleaners to tidy up.

After all the members of parliament and staff left, it was time for lunch break.

The assembly hall was empty except for Anna. She stood still behind the small platform where she earlier gave a speech, with a mix of confusion and indignation on her face, pondering in place.

Later that evening, a certain informant leaked the messy parliamentary incident to the newspapers, and it made the front-page headline.

In the newspapers, Anna von Bismarck was portrayed as arrogant, rude, foolish, and naive, becoming a laughingstock among the people of Berlin City, leading to increased sales at major restaurants.

Anna sat in her small office, daydreaming, when her assistant secretary came over and handed her a survey.

"Mrs. Bismarck, you were the talk of the town tonight. Many people were amused by your boldness in parliament and how the members scolded you. It was quite entertaining, you made everyone laugh."

"I interviewed twenty female citizens, and they also think you shouldn’t be involved in politics. Women should just stay at home and behave."

"It seems like nobody supports you in this world."

The assistant secretary of the Second Secretary of the Ministry of Finance didn’t support her boss either, purposely provoking Anna as she walked over, raising her blood pressure.

Anna lifted her head, snorted, waved her hand disdainfully, and ordered her assistant secretary to leave the office.

Prussia is a monarchy, and as long as Anna has the support of the prince regent, she doesn’t care about the opinions of those fools.

On Monday, the proposal regarding a budget of 1.5 million pounds and the construction of an industrial system was brought up for discussion in parliament. It was presented by the Chief Secretary of the Ministry of Industry but was not approved by the members.

On Tuesday, the Chief Secretary and the Minister of Finance of the Ministry of Finance jointly made a statement, but it was rejected.

On Wednesday, the Prime Minister made a speech, but it was rejected.

The budget proposal and Industrial Revolution plan, written by the prince regent himself, with the involvement of the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Industry, were repeatedly rejected by Parliament, with very high votes against it each time.

When a woman tried to make a speech, she was rejected. When a man tried to make a speech, he was also rejected. The outcome was the same, but the process was different.

When Anna went to Parliament, she faced harsh criticism from hundreds of Lords, while others had a more harmonious atmosphere when speaking. The Lords would make sarcastic remarks or riddles before opposing.

Anna identified the issue and went to Redel-Catherine Palace to meet the prince regent. She boldly pushed the door open and entered the office.

She found Catherine, that Son of Bitch, there as well.

Anna stared at Catherine with a look of death for a few seconds before turning to Leader One to report the situation at the desk.

"Those greedy insects are never satisfied with the benefits our proposal offers. They want more profits, which can only be achieved by increasing their gains. However, I suggest, Your Highness the Regent, to use a special decree to bypass Parliament discussions directly. We should not cater to those insects."

Leader One sadly shook his head, "Though I can bypass Parliament and issue the decree, we should still discuss this matter thoroughly. Since the source of this money is not clean, to avoid causing bigger issues, we must meet the needs of all classes."

"Let’s change this budget allocation and have the Ministry of Industry adjust the industrial development plan to increase the benefits for the bugs, so that the honorable members of parliament are satisfied."

Anna wasn’t very happy, but still said, "As you wish, Your Highness."

As Anna left the prince regent’s office, she gave Catherine another deathly glare.

Catherine fearlessly stared back and proudly showed off her wonderful curves.

Anna thought to herself, "One day, I’ll outsmart you."