Who is in favor? Who is against?

"All taxes levied on cities and free peasants shall be changed from being collected per 'gate' to being collected per 'household', and shall be collected in grades according to land value and income."

"All acts of privately setting up checkpoints and collecting customs duties on roads, ports, and towns are prohibited. Once discovered, they shall be treated as treason."

"One-third of all mining income throughout the country shall be levied as the royal share, to be collected by the Royal Mining Administration. No one shall privately withhold it without permission. Once discovered, they shall be treated as treason."

"All salt mines nationwide shall be operated by the Royal Family. Smuggling and selling of private salt are prohibited."

"The collection of church tax shall be restored. Church lords within Hungary shall pay one-third of the 'papal tax' to the King as per old custom. The church's right to collect tithes shall be protected by the King, and no one shall defy it."

"The 'one-thirtieth tax' shall be abolished and replaced with the 'Royal Treasury Tax'. The city chamber of commerce tax shall be abolished and replaced with the 'Trade Tax'. Both new taxes shall be collected from all eligible individuals."

"The customs duty exemption privileges and any other privileges that override other governorates in the Transylvania region shall be abolished, and the border region status of Transylvania shall be revoked."

"The restriction that the King must convene the Hungarian Parliament at least once a year shall be abolished and changed to being convened at the King's discretion. Those who are absent for three consecutive times or more shall be stripped of their parliamentary status."

"In times of war or royal financial emergency, with the approval of the Hungarian Parliament, the King shall collect special taxes such as the 'Turkey Tax' or 'Emergency Tax' within the Kingdom, to be collected from all citizens."

"No one shall resist the King for any reason. Violators shall all be treated as treason."

"Major cases must be personally tried by the King or the Palace High Justice and shall be under the jurisdiction of the Royal Palace Court. Large-scale violent means shall not be used to resolve noble disputes."

"The appointment of Kingdom county governors must be approved by the King to ensure that taxes, decrees, and the King's will are implemented."

Archbishop Veszter's aged voice echoed in the silent meeting hall.

The old regent stood calmly before the Emperor, reading out this shocking reform plan to the many members of the Hungarian Parliament.

Through his strenuous efforts, Laszlo still retained most of the church's rights.

The church land tax, which Laszlo had always yearned for, was, at Janus's reminder, whitewashed into the so-called "church tax" that had ceased to be collected since 1439.

Through this method, Archbishop Veszter finally agreed to pay this portion of the tax to the Emperor.

This was also considered to have filled the big pit dug by Albrecht II back then.

Albrecht II, who ascended the Hungarian throne in early 1439, immediately had to face the Hussite of Bohemia, the Polish invading army coveting the Bohemian crown, and the Ottoman Empire eyeing Hungary.

To stabilize the restless Kingdom of Hungary, he had to compromise with various classes within Hungary. The clergy took this opportunity to coerce him into stopping the collection of church tax.

After 24 years, Laszlo intended to reintroduce this tax.

As for more, Laszlo had not yet found a good opportunity to act against the church.

After all, since his ascension, the church forces in Hungary had been a great help to him.

Therefore, the minor reforms concerning the church did not cause much uproar, and the church forces led by Veszter still stood with Laszlo.

The focus of this reform was, of course, on the nobility, strictly speaking, the great nobility.

The first to bear the brunt were the Transylvania nobles, who had just undergone a purge.

They alone were specifically named in this reform to have many privileges revoked.

Regarding this, the new Governor Szécsényi, sitting in the first row below the stage, had no, and dared not have, any objections.

His family had risen by relying on the Emperor, and now that he had the opportunity to rectify the great nobles of Transylvania for the Emperor, he naturally would not disappoint the Emperor.

Of course, it was indispensable to take this opportunity to gain some small benefits for himself and his family.

However, with the Hunyadi Family's past as a warning, Szécsényi would act more cautiously.

Now, no one would want to become the next Hunyadi, unless his goal was also that saint stephen's crown.

His only regret was that when he succeeded to the governorship, the power of the Governor of Transylvania had already been greatly diluted.

The vast royal territories, the loyal Saxon cities, and the Archbishop of Alba Iulia awaiting the Emperor's appointment—these forces would all constrain him in the future.

And more importantly, military power. The abolition of the border region status also meant that the Governor of Transylvania would no longer control the border army and regional military affairs.

So, who should control the border army?

The answer was obvious: Paul Kinizsi, the Timisoara garrison commander and Royal Inspector, was further promoted to Southeast Border Defense Officer, directly reporting to the Emperor.

In this way, with its jurisdiction reduced, political power constrained, and military power completely stripped, the Governor of Transylvania could no longer stir up too much trouble.

But even so, the Governor of Transylvania was still a coveted position in everyone's eyes.

As the most powerful governor within the Kingdom, the benefits this office could bring were astonishingly great.

The gratifying economic benefits were secondary; the most crucial point was that anyone who could reach this position was definitely a trusted minister deeply favored by the Emperor.

Szécsényi, after being officially appointed Governor of Transylvania, was personally knighted by the Emperor and inducted into the Dragon Knight Order.

What an honor!

The thought of now being able to join the ranks of those influential and powerful figures who governed regions filled Szécsényi with irrepressible joy.

Therefore, while almost all other members of the Hungarian Parliament had grim expressions, only he and Frankopan, the Governor of Croatia sitting beside him, maintained their smiles.

Frankopan folded his arms, adopting an expression of watching the show.

The Emperor's reforms would not affect Croatia anyway, so he naturally had nothing to worry about.

However, he was not without his own troubles.

After the death of Count Cilli, his large territories in Croatia were inherited by the Emperor, and then a large number of Austrian bureaucrats flooded into the Croatian Parliament.

These people, moreover, represented the Emperor's will, so Frankopan, even if he was somewhat displeased, could do nothing about them.

Fortunately, these were minor issues. Now, seeing the Hungarian nobles suffer, his mood became cheerful again.

But the great nobles who were targeted did not share their calm mood.

Count Chak was desperately suppressing the anger in his heart, strongly resisting the urge to interrupt Archbishop Veszter when he was halfway through his reading.

At the same time, he also held onto Chudor, who was already impatient beside him, preventing him from doing anything foolish.

They had expected the Emperor to come after them, but they had not expected him to be so ruthless.

These three successive cuts made Chak exclaim that he couldn't take it.

The first cut was on the customs issue, prohibiting nobles from setting up private checkpoints, which was to cut off a major source of their income.

The second cut was on mining income. Not only would salt mines be monopolized, but heavy taxes would also be levied on all other mining industries, probably to reduce over-reliance on land tax.

The third cut was on tax exemption privileges. The dignified Emperor was even playing word games, changing the name of the tax categories, and then all the old tax exemption privileges would be null and void?

This was equivalent to directly hitting their vital point.

Once the reform was truly implemented, decades of hard times could be seen at a glance.

Not to mention the later provisions such as the abolition of "lawful rebellion" and the expansion of royal judicial power.

This was completely trampling on the ancient noble political traditions of the Kingdom of Hungary.

If it were in the past, the Hungarian Parliament would have erupted in fierce opposition long ago.

But at this moment, Chak's gaze swept across the hall, and not a single person dared to stand up and openly resist.

Many people's gazes shifted back and forth between him and the newly appointed Governor of Transylvania.

Clearly, these nobles, who valued their lives more than anyone, dared not rashly oppose the Emperor unless someone took the lead.

Thirty years ago, the Gara Family, which had produced three Hungarian governors and five palatines, had led the opposition against the King.

In recent years, the powerful Hunyadi Family also led the nobles in their struggle for rights.

However, this year, these two families were completely annihilated by the Emperor in a single war.

Laszlo used the bloody reality to warn these nobles with ulterior motives that those who dared to openly defy his authority would never come to a good end.

Looking at Szilágyi Mihály and Báthory István, who were sitting in front of him, Chak grew even more disheartened.

In terms of strength alone, these two could now be said to be the strongest Grand Nobles below the King.

But what were they doing?

Szilágyi actually had his eyes closed, seemingly dozing off.

This military commander of the Kingdom, who had been feigning illness for several months, stayed at home every day as if he had truly ruined his health, and no one knew what he was doing hiding at home all day.

Báthory, on the other hand, was gazing at the Emperor sitting on the high platform with fervent eyes, probably thinking only of how to advance further in the military.

He hadn't expected much when he joined the army to suppress the rebellion this time, but he actually managed to secure the position of Royal Inspector.

This was a lucrative position, giving him sole command of an army, and it was the Budda Legion, which could be considered a semi-imperial guard.

Now, anyone who saw him had to be respectful; he had certainly not disgraced the family's prestige.

Since the high-ranking Governors and these two truly powerful figures remained silent, others felt even less confident in speaking up.

A strange silence fell over the hall.

Although Chak didn't hold much hope, he still looked towards the huddled city representatives.

While the Emperor's tax reforms primarily targeted the nobles, cities and free peasants were not spared either.

First, there was a change in the method of taxation; the era of taxing by "door," with 1 florin collected per door, was over.

Now, the Emperor intended to tax by "household," collecting money based on headcount and assets.

This was not good news for peasants and urban commoners, as they would likely have to pay more taxes.

Furthermore, the Emperor, under various pretexts, not only targeted nobles but also urban guilds.

The tax exemption privileges of some city guilds would naturally lose their effectiveness after the tax reform.

To obtain tax exemption for the new tax system, they would probably have to make another deal with the Emperor.

Chak didn't believe these people could resist protesting to the Emperor.

However, the result disappointed him; although some city representatives showed some dissatisfaction after hearing the reform measures, no one had stood up to object so far.

His thoughts couldn't help but drift back a few years, when members of the Hungarian Parliament would passionately refute the Emperor's unreasonable demands, ultimately forcing the Emperor to compromise.

But as of today, there was no one in the Hungarian Parliament who dared to defy the Emperor.

Seeing that there was no movement from the crowd, Archbishop Veszter turned to Laszlo.

Laszlo immediately rose from the throne, walked gracefully to the front of the platform, his gaze sweeping over the members of the Hungarian Parliament who filled the hall, and cleared his throat, saying, "This is the new Golden Bull that I am about to promulgate. Its contents are the various reforms that will be implemented next.

Every single article on it has been thoroughly considered by me, and it will absolutely be beneficial and harmless to the Kingdom of Hungary.

If any of you have any opinions, you are welcome to speak freely now.

One thing I must declare in advance: this Golden Bull will replace the Golden Bull promulgated by Andrew II and become the national law of the Kingdom of Hungary.

If none of you have anything to say, then tell me now, who is in favor? Who is against?"

The Emperor's words were like a stone dropped into a calm lake, immediately stirring up a ripple of whispers in the hall.

A gentle-looking middle-aged noble stood up, cleared his throat, and said, "Your Majesty, according to custom, we should have some time for discussion, usually a week.

The members of the Hungarian Parliament need time to discuss this astonishing Golden Bull you have proposed, article by article."

Chak looked at Gereb, who had stood up to speak, and secretly gave him a thumbs up.

At such a time, the only option was to stall, to buy time and see if things could take a turn for the better.

After all, the Emperor's display of so many menacing guards inside and outside the room could easily interfere with the judgment of the members of the Hungarian Parliament, making them timid and afraid to express their opinions.

Some people also echoed Gereb's suggestion; they truly needed time to think about this matter.

The information contained in the reform measures presented by the Emperor was overwhelming, and many people had not yet fully processed it.

Laszlo nodded slightly in approval, saying, "You have a point, but a week is too long; my time is precious.

Therefore, I will give you three days. This Golden Bull will be discussed in the Hungarian Parliament for three days, during which I will modify its articles as appropriate.

After three days, you must give a clear answer."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Gereb breathed a sigh of relief, slowly sat down, and began to consider his strategy for this matter.

Scattered discussions began to emerge in the hall, followed by more intense arguments.

The nobles huddled together, softly expressing their indignation, their eyes occasionally and cautiously glancing at Laszlo, who had returned to the throne on the platform.

If they could, they would very much like to veto every article that was unfavorable to their accumulation of wealth.

Unfortunately, not everyone shared their interests.

Aside from the Grand Nobles who had been "pacified" and betrayed their class, the lower nobles and emerging nobles favored by the Emperor would also not stand with them.

These reforms would not touch the fundamental interests of those minor nobles.

The Emperor promised to retain some of their tax exemption privileges, coupled with the allure of royal official positions, and thus a large number of lower noble members of the Hungarian Parliament sided with the Emperor.

The clergy had long since colluded with the Emperor and could not possibly stand with them.

Now, only those city representatives might stand with them.

Unfortunately, for these wealthy cities, they preferred to negotiate with the Emperor.

Trading some other rights for support of the tax reforms was their usual practice.

Now, ironically, these ancient, long-established nobles had become the minority in the Hungarian Parliament.

After the Hunyadi Family was overthrown, they didn't even dare to use their last resort—

—to force the King to compromise through military threat.

If only they could have been like the nobles from a few hundred years ago, who captured Laszlo's Empress, humiliated her, and then hanged her at the Budapest city gates, they wouldn't have to be sighing here.

The first day's discussion ultimately yielded no results.

On the second day, the Emperor assembled an entire squadron of his Imperial Guard outside the Budapest City Hall.

Such a display directly scared some timid individuals into weak knees. During the Hungarian Parliament session, Laszlo also struck some deals with those who could be won over.

For example, he promised to issue decrees confirming the autonomy of the Kingdom's major free cities and granting other privileges to some important cities.

Through this method, Laszlo ultimately won over the wavering city representatives to his side.

By the third day, Laszlo directly brought several thousand troops to stand by outside the Hungarian Parliament, giving the impression that if the Golden Bull wasn't signed today, no one would be allowed to leave.

This time, even the usually stubborn Grand Nobles softened.

They were only there for a meeting, not to fight the Emperor to the death; it simply wasn't worth suffering for.

Even if they couldn't swallow their anger, no one dared to jump out and seek death at this moment.

As for whether such high-pressure tactics would lead to serious consequences, Laszlo had long since planned for it and did not take the resentment of the opponents to heart at all.

He had learned this method from others.

In the original history, Szilágyi personally led 20,000 troops to directly surround the Hungarian Parliament and manipulate the royal election, presenting Matthias with a custom-made crown, and no one seemed to have any objections.

And Laszlo was only implementing a "small" economic reform; would anyone dare to speak out?

Thus, the Hungarian Parliament passed the 1463 Golden Bull promulgated by the Emperor with an overwhelming majority of votes, without a single word changed.

A grand economic reform was about to begin in the Kingdom of Hungary.