Chapter 328 – 328. The Duchess’ First Struggle (2)

– One –

Late afternoon in early fall.

The meeting room of the Imperial Press Review Committee.

Land, land, land.

An old man with her head shaved givesl.

However, there seemed to be no sincerity in the act.

It does it indifferently and mechanically.

“With this, the discussion on the agenda prepared in advance has ended. If you have any additional agenda items to propose, please raise your hand.”

The person sitting in the chairman’s seat looks around and speaks casually.

As a ministry that was organized to push the blade of regulation while appropriately attacking the media and publishers, they did not always have much passion for their work.

Even such regulations were only a device to represent the interests of vested interests, so all members of the Unsim Committee, from the chairperson to the lowest members, had no expertise in their main work.

Which media outlets to regulate and what content to hold onto them, those parts are delivered in advance from those in power with vested interests, and it is implemented as it is without fail.

For that reason, the meeting at the Unsim Committee was only a formal procedure.

He wondered if he desperately wanted to end these formal meetings as soon as possible.

Swoop.

“Kuhm…”

When someone raised their hand, they reflexively frowned.

However, immediately after confirming who the behemoth was,

Startle.

Instantly brightens complexion.

He widened the wrinkles between his brows and couldn’t help but smile.

Haha. Were you Commissioner Chiba B. Whisky? Speak.”

The one who raised her hand was because she was the only woman in the Empire who deserved to be properly called a Duchess.

She is only a member of the Unshim Committee.

However, because she ranks below the chairperson, even because her chairperson belongs to her noble family, one cannot disrespect her.

Even if she is the head of an aristocratic family, she has to take a step back from a woman who monopolizes her own favor as the only duke in the empire.

That was the difference in status and the center of gravity of power.

“When I reflect on the past period of my activities as a member of the Press Review Committee, I always feel doubts about whether the act itself of reviewing the press is being carried out correctly.”

“Yeah…? That, what do you mean by that…”

The chairman is perplexed.

No matter how much he thought about it, he himself had been running the committee in accordance with the purpose of its establishment.

He never acted differently from the intentions of those in power, and thoroughly regulated the media and publishers to suit the tastes of the vested interests.

However, if there is a problem, it is that the regulation of publishers was not perfect because the law and system did not follow the reality.

“If you have any opinions about what you judged to be lacking, please tell the various committee members without hesitation, Mr. Chiba B. Whiskai.”

“Yes.”

As if of course he would, Chiba politely nodded her head.

They swear to the goddess that they’ve never done anything to upset Chiba, but when Chiba gets a say in a trivial agenda, everyone in her conference room gets nervous.

Depending on Chiba’s opinion, their situation could have been decided.

A decent job, a decent pay, a decent social honor, and a decent sense of superiority.

They got their easy-to-get luck in getting it all for free, just by sitting there.

It was the luck of a lifetime, obtained so easily and unthinkable by the incompetent, that they did not want to lose what they had already gained.

If you lose these things, it is because you never had the confidence to win them again for the rest of your life.

“We’ve always been passively selecting candidates for review.”

“…”

“In other words, unless someone complained, we didn’t think to come forward and deliberate. In the meantime, the world of journalism and publishing has lost its dignity and is becoming so shallow. When you look at magazines and newspapers published these days, Every time, I’m at a loss for words at the goose-gaying nakedness, and every time I’m aware of that, I often wonder if our Imperial Press Review Board is functioning properly.”

“Well, isn’t that because of a lack of budget and manpower…?”

The chairperson carefully refutes, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Chiba doesn’t deny that, but gently nods his head.

“Of course. You and I are starting our own media outlets, and at a time when it seems like we are seeing a flood of media outlets, how can we, with fewer than 30 members, go through all those publications individually? It’s practically impossible. If I were to undertake review of all the publications, I would be spending my whole day just looking at the publications that came out every day. If you asked me to do that, I’d feel crushed too.”

Haha…”

“Ho-ho-ho.”

Hearing Chiba’s joke, the committee members and the chairperson let out a fake laugh.

But they were obviously relieved.

It was because Chiba had left them with the impossible task, making sure that she wasn’t alone in trying to feel moral superiority.

“Then, does Commissioner Chiba B. Whiskai think we need to create a new institutional mechanism to actively review publications?”

“Of course. But nothing new.”

Dalgrak.
Gulp.

Chiba elegantly takes a sip of the tea.

Seeing the uvula dripping from her slender neck, several male members of the committee swallowed their mouths together.

Chiba sees their lust clearly, but she doesn’t show anything.

If she had cared about all her desires for him, she might have gone mad long ago.

Click.

When she puts the teacup down, her eyes wander from her neck and collarbone.

They deliberately show the attitude that they were quietly listening to her, as if nothing had happened.

“Until now, we only received reports from a limited number of people and introduced the rules for review. But I would like to expand it a little more. In short, thousand things, excuse me. It is to make it possible for commoners to report.”

“Um…”

Several committee members, including the chairperson, nodded with serious faces.

But deep down, as if they weren’t happy about the increase in work, the light of their desire was dotted with avoidance.

Chiba read their minds clearly, and inwardly she was snoring.

“But if the common people ask for review at any time, for any publication, it’s almost certain that it will be nothing more than a flood of things happening in another form. And we spend all our time on it, looking at the review request all day. You would. That would be too inefficient.”

“You are indeed right.”

“I agree with what you said, Commissioner.”

Chiba refutes his own opinion, and exactly satisfies the desire of this incompetent and lazy human group.

Although she has not yet revealed all of her details, the number of people who sympathize with Chiba’s opinion increases rapidly.

Chiba internally laughed at the idiots.

However, on the outside, she still maintains politeness.

“If there were clear guidelines, wouldn’t it be possible to reduce the amount of time we spend looking at the contents? We only receive cases that violate the standards, so we only have to regulate according to the guidelines.”

“Um… It is said that media companies can impose direct regulations, but isn’t that impossible for publishers that publish magazines? Because magazines are a new type of publication, there are currently no legal standards that can regulate them. Since the members of Congress are also putting war-related issues first, isn’t it clear that there will be no room for new legislation for the time being?”

One member expresses his or her opinion.

As if Chiba was surprised, she looked at him.

This is because it has been rare for anyone to have expressed any opinion here at the meeting room of the Press Deliberation Committee.

“Even if we can’t impose legal sanctions, wouldn’t it be possible to make common people feel that reading such immoral and disturbing books is a shameful act? And if public opinion is formed to condemn such vulgar books, it may be possible to legislate the related bill a little more gently at the parliamentary meeting. For now, other issues related to the rebels are on hold indefinitely. However, I think it is right to do what we can in advance.”

“Ah… Thank you for your reply.”

The questioner nods.

He seemed to be quite impressed with Chiba’s logical answer.

However, in Chiba’s eyes, it was clear what kind of desire he was harboring, so he just felt different.

It is because the act itself was the purpose of him desperately working his head that was not working well, and just mixing words with Chiba.

“There are many ignorant people who don’t even know what’s wrong, so we need to give them clear guidelines. We’re going to step in and tell them what’s wrong and why.”

“What guidelines do you think are necessary for the common people, Commissioner Chiba B. Whiskai?”

Could it be because one person felt jealous of having a long conversation with Chiba?

Another male member of the committee competitively questions her.

Seeing that, a smile forms on Chiba’s lips.

It was because the desire they had for themselves was meaningless and insignificant, but thanks to that, they seemed to be able to smoothly achieve their goals.

“The current publishing market is so promiscuous. Physical love between a man and a woman.”

Gulp.

Hearing the words Chiba put in his mouth, someone swallows dry saliva.

Chiba pretended not to hear it.

“They proudly talk about the act of buying and selling it as a material. The system of this empire can run smoothly only when the common people maintain an appropriate population by producing the next generation through a healthy union between men and women. What is completely unrelated to production activities is the act of buying and selling sex through Changgwan.”

“I agree with Commissioner Chiba B. Whisky.”

A middle-aged female member of the committee with a stubborn impression agrees with Chiba’s opinion.

She was nodding her head with an eager expression, as if she loathed prostitution.

“Prostitutes’ livelihood is at stake, so if they have a child, they’ll have an abortion. They lightly kill His Majesty’s precious subjects just because they can’t do business until they’re pregnant and give birth. What a waste of that? Even Male prostitutes are the same. Male prostitutes for boys are not only of no help to maintain the population, they are filthy and disgusting just by their existence. Same goes for male prostitutes for girls. They are ashamed of their father being a body-slut. It’s the same with women who have taken on male prostitutes, regardless of whether you choose to have an abortion.”

As she gave her impassioned speech, her Chiba bowed her neck at her in gratitude.

It’s because she gave her all the stories she wanted to tell.

“That’s right. Newspapers and publishers openly advertise, research, compare and analyze them, put them in newspapers and magazines, and then publish them. And readers are crazy about it.”

“Kuhm…”

Could it be that he was an avid reader of magazines and newspapers containing such content?

Someone coughs with an uncomfortable feeling.

But Chiba doesn’t care.

She has no intention of stepping out and giving her opinion, and she has no reason to deal with people who gossip behind her back.

“As long as we stand openly under the name of the Press Review Committee, we must actively criticize these vulgar behaviors and furthermore make the public denounce them. Isn’t that just the name?”

She makes eye contact with all the members, including her chairperson.

Some averted her eyes, but most of them nodded her head at her.

“Then, to summarize Commissioner Chiba B. Whiskai’s opinion, can we prepare specific standards for content that is deemed unwholesome, including prostitution, and then issue a statement condemning it in the name of our Press Review Committee?”

As if the chairperson confirmed it, she summarizes and organizes her opinions without going through a decision-making process through a majority vote.

And no one complains about it.

All of them knew very well that there would be nothing left to do even if the trend was not tilted, even if they struggled against someone who could tilt alone.

“Yes. And we should establish a reward system for reporting it, so that the common people can directly report the unsavory books directly to us. At the same time, so that they can feel morally superior by doing the right thing. , If appropriate citations are issued to commoners who report unsavory books, it will be possible to achieve high efficiency at a low cost in inducing active participation in reporting.”

“All right.”

The chairman looks around her while sitting in the chair.

I put some strength on my eyes and take a look at the faces of the committee members.

“If you disagree with this bill, please raise your hand.”

“…”

No one raises a hand this time.

Someone will surely object to Chiba’s opinion.

It was clear that there would also be dissatisfaction with the unilateral decision.

However, their dissatisfaction with the late ending of the meeting was greater than those complaints, so no one raised any objection.

It was because it was more urgent to finish the meeting and leave work than to regulate the magazines and newspapers that commoners read.

“Then, I declare that this agenda has been passed unanimously.”

Land, land, land.

Everyone nodded their heads with clear faces.

They wait for the last word.

“Then, this concludes today’s meeting.”

Land, land, land.

This time, the chairperson did not say anything about the existence of additional agenda items.

Using the psychology of lazy and incompetent people blindly wanting to leave work at the end of the meeting, passing the agenda with ease was Chiba’s true goal.

And when it matched exactly, Chiba couldn’t help but laugh at them all inwardly.

In Chiba’s eyes, they looked genuinely insignificant.