I am a director in Ark. If I am not banned, I will be considered successful.

And in Rhodes Island, after going through the very tense topic of the local government, Amiya also showed an interested expression after seeing the relatively light-hearted topic of the sixth episode.

"But... do these theaters have so much power in Victoria? Why does even the Prime Minister seem to be afraid of them, but doesn't want to offend them? Is it just because he is afraid of being criticized?"

"The answer is simple, Amiya. Just look at Director Chen Qi and you'll know."

However, Kal'tsit didn't find this strange, and explained to Amiya: "Director Chen Qi is an obvious example. When a theater troupe's influence reaches a certain level, they are natural publicity."

"They can make a film to praise something, and of course they can also make a film to belittle something. The Royal Theatre in the play is a very representative part of Victoria, a group that politicians don't want to offend."

"Why?" Amiya blinked her big eyes, looking very confused, and Kal'tsit also explained:

"Because the Royal Theatre is aimed at people who have a certain level of financial resources and the time and energy to spend on entertainment. In short, they are all upper-class people who have time to cultivate their sentiments."

"Most of these groups are either rich or noble, or at least have a certain influence on the system. If the Royal Theatre publicly expresses in this situation that the current ruler does not value art, it is likely to extend to the lack of attention for this class of people."

"The relationship between Victoria's arts groups and politicians is based on interests, so the amount of funding is directly related to the interests of the theatres and also shows the government's emphasis on the arts."

"——As expected of Dr. Kal'tsit, this is a very insightful evaluation."

However, at this moment, as the office door opened, a handsome man dressed in black was seen walking slowly towards them. On his shoulders was a black cat with two tails, which added a bit of mystery to him.

"Shadow Operator?" Amiya did not expect that this person, who always disliked appearing in crowded places, would come to the office for the first time.

"I asked him to come. I think Operator Shadow may be able to help us better appreciate the content of this episode this time." Kal'tsit also explained to Amiya, and then looked at the man who came out of the mysterious "Scarlet Troupe" and was now codenamed "Shadow". She said:

"Operator Guiying, you were once infamous... Please forgive me for using this word, but you are the only one who came out of the Scarlet Troupe. I think you should have more say than us about the content of this episode."

"I understand..." Guiying also nodded, and his eyes turned to the "Yes, Prime Minister" playing on TV at the moment, and he couldn't help but say:

"I have also heard about Director Chen Qi's deeds. He is a playwright with extremely sharp writing skills and great talent."

"No, it's better to say that compared to the 'playwright' I know... Director Chen Qi's scripts are more comprehensive."

"Eh? Operator Guiying, do you think so highly of Director Chen Qi?" Amiya was also a little surprised by Guiying's evaluation. Although Guiying had not been in Rhodes Island for a long time and had always been a loner, few people knew him well.

But Amiya knew very well that Guiying was the only person who had walked out alive from the famous "Scarlet Troupe". He was a "blood diamond" who was personally spotted and trained by the mysterious troupe leader, and was trained by the troupe leader as a natural protagonist.

Guiying's high evaluation of Chen Qi can be said to be the recognition of the most representative figure in the industry. Guiying nodded when he heard this:

"The director of the troupe loves tragedies. Although the troupe does not only rehearse tragedies, the playwrights naturally have to cater to the director's preferences, because most of the scripts they write tend to be tragic."

"And several works directed by Chen Qi were all directed by him personally. They are not just tragedies, but also wars, comedies, satires and teachings that lead people to be good... These are much better than any meaningless tragedies."

"Then, I am also curious about what the talented Director Chen Qi thinks of the troupe... The Scarlet Troupe has also colluded with many politicians. I'm sure Director Chen Qi will see the interests involved more thoroughly, right?"

Having said this, Guiying was so interested in a play for the first time, because there was no doubt that Chen Qi's crew had now reached a height and influence that the Scarlet Troupe that he destroyed had not achieved in many years. In Guiying's heart, Chen Qi was a more capable leader than the troupe director.

Guiying was curious, how would someone like Chen Qi evaluate the troupe? How would he satirize the troupe?

Back to the play, after knowing the whole story, Humphrey, played by Lord Blood Demon, who is also a member of the National Theatre's board of directors and a stakeholder, couldn't help but feel caught in a dilemma.

He wanted to persuade the Prime Minister to increase funding for the National Theatre, and also wanted to find a way to relieve the Prime Minister's worries, so he had to offer some advice:

"Excuse me, Prime Minister, if you want to enter the tiger's den, you can't take the tiger's food first."

"What suggestions do you have?" Tracys asked at the moment, and the Blood Demon Lord's suggestion was also very simple, and he said confidently:

"Give us more food. Increase the funding for the Arts Council. It should be just over 2 million, right?"

"This food is really expensive." Manfred couldn't help but complain, but the Blood Demon Lord also agreed with him and said, "It's what we eat in a luxury hotel..."

However, Tracy was not happy with the suggestion and took the opportunity to explain why he was so reluctant to increase funding and attend the dinner.

"That damn organization is always acting to attack me. They even staged a play to attack my policies. It's a farce. Why do they do this?"

"That's very helpful, Prime Minister." However, Lord Blood Demon had a completely different opinion. Immediately afterwards, he expressed his own unique views on the "political satire" performed in the theater.

"Basically no one watches political dramas, and half of those who do watch don't understand them. Of those who do, half don't agree with them, and the rest are anti-government anyway."

The Blood Demon Lord's comment made the audience laugh, but they suddenly felt something was wrong. Fortunately, the smart Amiya reacted quickly after being stunned and asked:

"Um... Director Chen Qi's Yes, Prime Minister seems to be a political drama, right? Director Chen Qi, are you satirizing the audience as well?"

"...It seems that Director Chen Qi is more courageous than we thought. He directly reached out and mocked the audience outside the screen."

Kal'tsit obviously understood the meaning and couldn't help but want to laugh, but she really couldn't think of any words to refute this sentence in Chen Qi's script.

The puppets were also slightly stunned and muttered to themselves:

"You actually use this method to mock the audience, and the audience doesn't mind? I'm afraid even the head of the troupe wouldn't do this, right?"

The sharp comments in the play have not yet ended, and the Blood Demon Lord continued: "But this can make people vent their anger."

"You'll be seen as a democratic politician if you give money to your critics."

However, when it comes to this, Tracy is still very reluctant, and said with concern: "People who want to criticize me should make a living by criticizing my box office revenue!"

"Oh, Prime Minister, that money is far from enough." The Blood Demon Lord also replied with emotion: "Not to mention that the drama satirizing the government is the second most boring in history."

"Then they..." Tracy dared to say anything, and asked curiously: "What is the most boring thing?"

"—a play praising the government."

The Blood Demon Lord's sharp comment made countless audiences from all over the world burst into laughter, because under the general environment, it is impossible for people in almost all countries not to have watched a drama produced in their own country that "praises the government."

Therefore, anyone who has watched these dramas will agree with Lord Blood Demon’s sharp review - it is obvious at a glance that the drama praises the government, and the praise is very embarrassing, and it is indeed the most boring drama.

However, what surprised Kal'tsit and others was that these words could be said to have discredited the entire drama "Yes, Prime Minister". As a playwright, Chen Qi actually added a label of "second most boring" to his proudest drama.

This passage can be said to be a satire on everyone, the audience, all countries, and even Chen Qi himself and the show.

"…If the Scarlet Theater had not been destroyed and the head of the theater knew about the existence of Director Chen Qi, he would probably take him away at all costs and become the new 'playwright'."

Even Guiying was shocked by Chen Qi's writing style, but he was not annoyed at all because he was also AOE. No, it would be better to say that no audience was annoyed because of being ridiculed by Chen Qi. This is a profound art of words and psychology.

"No...it's better to say that Director Chen Qi is more suitable to be the troupe leader than the troupe director, right? He has the tolerance and self-reflection that the troupe director doesn't have."

Guiying couldn't help but think so, but he also couldn't help but wonder, if he had joined Chen Qi's crew instead of the Scarlet Troupe, what would he be like?

"They shamed me, and they still want more money?" In the play, Tracys was very unhappy with the behavior of these people, and the Blood Demon Lord nodded and said:

“Yes, I admit it’s not a very noble move – but that’s what artists do, kneeling and shaking their fists at the government.”

"Hit me on the head with the begging bowl!"

It was another extremely sharp remark, so sharp that it could be said to have made all the national art groups in Terra frown. However, this time, the top leaders of all countries agreed with it deeply, and not just the king and the grand duke, who nodded repeatedly.

"I can't earn votes by allocating funds to art." Tracys was still reluctant, and at this moment, Bill, the publicity secretary, reminded him:

"But if we don't, our reputation will be ruined. Those who promote art are all middle class, and this is the only way they can get back the taxes they pay."

"Mortgage interest tax relief, university funding, lump sum pensions, Radio 3, subsidised tickets for theatre, opera and concerts, you can't rip us off any more!"

However, after saying this, Bill suddenly came to his senses and immediately changed his words: "They!"

This again made the audience laugh, but at this moment, almost all the audience understood that the so-called "middle class" did not seem to refer to the middle class as they understood it, but to civil servants and social elites like Bill and Humphrey.

The so-called attention to art is nothing more than a way for them to pay less tax legally or even make a fortune.

As soon as Chen Qi said this, the faces of civil servants from all over the world, the so-called "middle class" people, turned dark - just because they had a foundation and were exposed by this drama.

All of this quietly caused even more headaches for the top officials in Casimir, who were already in a mess far away - because they knew that tomorrow the reporters and media would use this incident to make a fuss again, because their political system was very similar to Victoria's.

This also made many people in Casimir hate Chen Qi even more, and they even hated him to the point of gritting their teeth.

Chen Qi, you really deserve to die! At this moment, the Casimir executives cursed Chen Qi very viciously in their hearts. They had already begun planning how to eliminate Chen Qi and his crew...

Chapter 150: "Yes, Prime Minister" on-site guidance, civil servants' "jargon"

"They can pay for it themselves, why should the government pay them for entertainment?"

In the play, Tracy still doesn't understand why the government has to pay for these so-called "middle-class" entertainments when they are all serving the country? And if the people want to watch them, they can only buy tickets at full price?

However, Tracy overlooked a big problem here - that is, most people do not have the time and energy to cultivate their sentiments. Most people are already exhausted just from being busy with work and family. Even if they have leisure time, things related to "taste" such as drama and structure are definitely not their first choice.

People need relaxing entertainment when they are under great pressure. Therefore, most people rarely come into contact with these taste-related things, so it can be said that the so-called "middle class" are the ones who pay for these "entertainment".

The Blood Demon Lord also explained: "This cannot be considered entertainment. The problem is that we have a lot of cultural heritage to protect."

"Paintings that no one appreciates, music that no one listens to, plays that no one watches... we can't let them become extinct just because no one is interested, right?"

The Blood Demon Lord's point of view made the audience laugh. Although this theory is a bit exaggerated in the Terra world, because entertainment is still in its infancy on the Terra continent and everyone's spiritual world is still very scarce, it has indeed produced a lot of "obsolete" culture.

But the Blood Demon Lord's point of view did sound contradictory. Teresis also looked confused and asked, "Why not?"

"—— Prime Minister, this is a bit like the Lateran Parish in Victoria." The Blood Demon Lord also thought of a more reasonable analogy and said:

"People don't like to go to church, but because the church is there, apart from the occasional gunshots and explosions, most of the time the church makes people feel comfortable. The same is true for art."

"As long as they are here, we are part of a civilized nation."

The Blood Demon Lord’s explanation may be incomprehensible to ordinary people in various countries, but to the top leaders of various countries, this explanation is already the standard answer.

It can be said that the higher one stands in the social hierarchy, the more one can understand the importance of "art" to a country and a civilization. The development of art carries too many human stories, which allows a country to have a trace to follow and a history to tell. It can also allow the people to identify with their own culture and enhance the national self-confidence.

Not only the Yan Nation and other countries, but also Theresa's side, several Sarkaz nodded very solemnly, and Theresa also slowly spoke:

"That's right... Kazdel has been destroyed countless times. Much of our culture, art, and history... have been lost in the repeated destruction of Kazdel."

"In the past, our clan was not a clan that only knew how to kill and exchange death for power. We had our own music, our own art, and our own traditions... Unfortunately, under repeated destruction, our clan lost most of the civilization that was so demanding for survival in order to survive."

"There are a lot of gaps and a lot of untraceable information. If we were not still guarding the last library, Kazdel would have been destroyed countless times, and I'm afraid our clan would have become homeless wanderers long ago."

Theresa's words also made everyone in the room fall into silence. For a moment, whether it was Manfred, who was young and had never witnessed the prosperous Kazdel, or the Blood Demon Lord who had witnessed the true glory and dreamed of returning to that peak countless times, all fell into a long silence.

"We will rebuild it, Wang Mei, both the city and the culture."

After a brief moment of grief, Tracy said this to his sister.

Theresa did not answer, because she knew very well that the city of Kazdel could be rebuilt, and order could be re-established, and there would be cities and countries that hosted the Sarkaz.

However, as stated in the play, only a civilization that has a sense of intimacy and belonging for the Sarkaz can gather all the Sarkaz together, making Kazdel the home of the Sarkaz again, and allowing the rebuilt Kazdel to once again become a "civilized country" accepted and recognized by the world.

However, too many traces of Kazdel's traditions have been erased, and most of what is retained are not accepted by the outside world... People outside do not understand the Sarkaz's respect for "death", and will not accept the Sarkaz's tradition of gaining new life and strength from "death".

"So...try to create a new, more civilized culture?"

Theresa thought so in her heart, and her thoughts could not help but drift away, because she found that the more she thought about the future revival of the Sarkaz people, she found that what the Sarkaz lacked most now was "culture".

And so far, the person who understood this best that she had met... seemed to be not far away.

When she thought of this, Theresa's thoughts became active again, but at this moment, no one knew what was going on in Theresa's mind. And the sixth episode of "Yes, Prime Minister" was still playing...

The Blood Demon Lord approached Simon, the general manager of the National Theatre, about the funding and the Prime Minister's attendance at the dinner. Simon obviously had high expectations for this funding and expressed his expectations very directly:

"What about the Arts Council's funding for next year? Is 30 million enough?"

"puff!"

However, as soon as Simon said this, Amiya on Rhodes Island spat out all the water and couldn't stop coughing, but she still said in horror:

"Thirty, thirty million?! Victoria gold coins? Cough cough cough! Luo, even if we sell Rhode Island we still wouldn't have that much money!"

“Calm down, Amiya. You are the leader of Rhodes Island now. You must stay calm at all times.” Kal’tsit also reminded Amiya while patting her back to make her feel a little more comfortable.

"Besides, Rhodes Island has more than 30 million. You must have confidence in this land aircraft carrier under your feet."

It was rare for Kal'tsit to tell a joke. Maybe she was in a good mood today. She was also pleased to see that Amiya had learned a lot from "Yes, Prime Minister".

After Amiya calmed down, she immediately thanked Kal'tsit for her help, but then she turned to ask the silent puppet:

"Operator Puppet Shadow, may I ask, when you were in the Scarlet Troupe, did it cost so much money to maintain the troupe?"

"...The troupe leader rarely shows up. Only his confidants would take care of the account books. I don't know much about it."

Guiying thought about it and recalled his experience in the troupe. He guessed, "But the troupe leader can always invite a large number of dignitaries to enjoy the performance. These people spend money like water. I guess the troupe leader is not short of money."

"The performances are all held in the castle. Every year, the director of the troupe spends a lot of money on maintaining the castle. So I think 30 million Victorian gold coins a year... may be too much, but it does not seem incomprehensible."

Guiying finally expressed his thoughts. Although he didn't know the specific financial situation of the troupe, he had been in the Scarlet Troupe for so long that he knew where some of the money was spent.

The puppet's words made Amiya pause for a moment. It was no wonder that Amiya was so surprised. After all, Rhodes Island's finances were in a long-term deficit because they often needed to provide free assistance to the infected people on the island.

Although some infected operators are willing to go on missions to pay for their own medical expenses by "paying their debts with their own bodies", most of the infected operators' work is just humanitarian care for Rhodes Island, which is not enough to pay for their oripathy inhibitors.

But Rhodes Island still did not forget to control the disease for every infected person. If Rhodes Island did not have a lot of industrial chains other than pharmaceuticals, such as red gold, Rhodes Island would not be far from bankruptcy.

Amiya had never thought about 30 million Victorian gold coins, and this was just a budget for the show? And it wasn't made up, it seemed to be reasonable.

In the play, the Blood Demon Lord responded to Simon's question in a businesslike manner: "Dear Simon, I can't let the news leak out in advance, especially to the general manager of the National Theater."

However, the Blood Demon Lord's words made the other party smile with understanding. However, the next performance made Amiya and other young people and civilians who had no contact with politics look confused.

Simon took the cup with many bread sticks and placed it in front of the Blood Demon Lord. He smiled and asked, "Would you like some of this?"

The Blood Demon Lord also had a blank expression on his face. He just picked out six bread sticks and put them into the cup in front of Simon.