The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

For an emperor who was once ambitious, invincible, and determined to transform the entire country, what could be more cruel than watching his country regress to the state it was before he ascended the throne?

Qiao Yelan was not interested in whether the Eastern Kingdom could exist independently; he was simply going to punish the traitors.

Killing someone is never important; what matters is destroying their spirit.

Chapter Thirty-Five: Invitations

This time, Qiao Yelan came to Saint Eagle Castle as Kosich's special envoy with a political invitation, so they could not just find a hotel to stay in on their own, but went to the official guesthouse of Ursus.

As soon as the convoy arrived, someone visited Qiao Yelan's room.

"Are you Mr. Qiao Yelan, the chief administrator appointed by the Grand Duke of Cosice?"

Qiao Yelan raised an eyebrow. This guy really knew how to give himself a title.

"it's me."

"I am Colonel Yefim Berekov. Lieutenant General Anatoly invites you to attend an important meeting at his villa on the Okhta River at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow."

An invitation was handed over.

"A private meeting, or—"

"It is a government meeting, and many officials will be present. You may bring your own guards, but security inside the villa will be the responsibility of the Lieutenant General."

The man nodded and accepted the invitation.

"Please tell His Excellency the General that I will arrive on time."

"Then I won't disturb your rest any longer. Goodbye."

The other party acted decisively and left immediately after handing over the invitation.

Qiao Yelan opened the invitation, which was written in beautiful cursive script. It did not reveal the content of the meeting, and it seemed to be an invitation to a luncheon.

[Why is this guy hosting the meeting? He wasn't among the people who invited me.]

"Anatol Romanov, son of Grand Duke Nicholas. Ever since he defended the Fortress of the Falcon against the rebels, Grand Duke Nicholas has become the leader of the noble faction. He has always opposed the actions of his brother Vladimir, and therefore has been hostile to Speaker Witt of the Ursus Council, who was supported by the late emperor."

Qiao Yelan accurately stated the other party's name.

"The new emperor Fyodor has just ascended the throne, and his prestige is unstable. Only when he and Witte join forces can they barely contend with Grand Duke Nicholas. There is indeed no one related to him among those who invited you, but the nobles have already chosen sides, either His Majesty the Emperor or this Grand Duke who is the de facto regent."

So you mean, this whole thing was actually orchestrated by Nikolai?

"I'm afraid it's not just him alone. If Nikolai was the one who pushed for this, he probably wouldn't have invited you to send someone to participate—you've probably forgotten the title of 'Vice-King of Siberia,' but to be honest, your vice-kingdom covers nearly a quarter of the territory of the Ursus Empire."

Yes, but there are no roads, no mobile city-states, and even the capital is just a village—the population, taxes, and output are probably less than one percent of Ursus's, and even then, they're practically nonexistent. If it weren't for a few mines, I probably wouldn't even be able to maintain my own residence.

Kosic retorted irritably.

This title was given to her by the newly enthroned Ursus Emperor not long after the Nightmare Khan's expedition ended. At that time, Kosiche, representing the newly established Ursus Empire, was planting boundary markers at the borders of other countries—but she ended up running all the way to the border between the Great Yan and the Eastern Kingdom, and managed to carve out a large area of ​​frozen wasteland.

The emperor at the time was speechless. If it were usable land, it would be fine, but the problem was that there were no people, no roads, and many places didn't even have arable land. Moreover, there were always some strange things coming from the north. So, it was best to have someone survey the area and then give most of the wasteland and permafrost zone to Kosiché as his fief.

"But that makes sense. I've always been labeled a royalist, and the nobles should see me as an outcast. Nicholas shouldn't, and has no need to, drag me into this."

"The Babel caravans haven't received any information about it yet, and the truth may only become clear after we get to Anatoli's villa—I want to know beforehand what your attitude will be if there are problems with this matter that require my intervention to help or obstruct it?"

[I told you I don't care. Nobles, parliament, the young emperor—these people are far inferior to Vladimir. If that man were still alive, I might consider giving him an order. As for these guys—laughable!]

Kosiché scoffed.

You're free to disgust everyone equally. I've given you this title, so whatever you do, I'll support you—frankly, what can they do to me? Territory, reputation, what do they mean to me?

Qiao Yelan nodded.

Now we'll see how things unfold tomorrow.

--------------------------------------------------

Inside a luxurious villa, the warmth of the heating made people sweat slightly. Yefim stood by an oval table, confirming information with the clerk.

How many paper tapes have you prepared?

Eight hours.

"It's too long, cut it in half."

"Yes."

slam-la-

The sound of dishes shattering came from the dining room outside the door. A maid was lying on the floor, frantically trying to pick up the pieces and put them back on the tray.

A shadow fell over the colonel's face. As he stepped out of the meeting hall, those in the restaurant who had come to help him fell silent, and even the maid knelt on the ground, not daring to raise her head.

The villa's butler rushed in and met Yefim's gaze.

"Is there enough?"

"I believe we have enough."

"Do you believe it, or are you sure?"

"I am sure."

Yefim nodded.

“Calculate the damages, make her compensate, and submit another report to me—don’t let me see her in the villa again.”

"Yes, Your Excellency."

The air seemed to start flowing again, and the servants around began to help tidy up.

Yefim walked towards the foyer, where his secretary, who had just arrived, handed him a full briefcase.

He walked back into the meeting room with his briefcase, which contained ten identical documents.

As she entered the restaurant, the maid who was still tidying up saw Yefim and panicked, trying to get up. In the end, the butler grabbed her and she staggered away.

However, Yefim ignored it, simply walked into the meeting room, closed the door, and placed documents in each seat.

dong dong dong.

"Colonel, the gatekeeper said the first group of guests has arrived and the car will be here soon."

"I see."

Yefim hurried out; he was responsible for welcoming the guests before the villa's owner arrived.

A muddy car pulled up, clearly having traveled a long distance and arrived at the meeting without even having time to be washed.

The serial number on the license plate tells everyone where the car came from.

One of the vassal states of the Ursus Empire, the East Kazimir Governorate.

Chapter Thirty-Six: The Opening

The car stopped, and a guard opened the door, from which two people got out.

As they entered the foyer, they were greeted by Yefim.

"Hello, Colonel, I am Valentin Viktolov, Minister of State of the East Kasimir Governor's Office."

"Hello, Your Excellency Minister, I am Yefim Berekov, General Anatoly's secretary. We have met before."

"Yes, it's been a long time."

The soldier who was signing the register stood up and shook hands with Yefim.

"Long time no see, Yefim."

"It's been a long time, Your Excellency Minister of Military Affairs, Andrei."

After Valentin finished signing, Yefim politely extended his hand in invitation.

"Gentlemen, you've worked hard. I'm sure you can find something to soothe your tired bodies in the restaurant. If you need anything else, please let me know immediately."

"I just wish I had some Gaul wine. Damn it, why did they have to be wiped out so many of them back then?"

The two walked toward the restaurant, while Yefim quickly came over, picked up the register, tore off the signed piece of paper, then tore off the two pieces with the engraving below, and handed them to the bewildered liaison officer.

"Take it away, and no one else coming in after this doesn't need to be recorded."

"Yes, sir."

Yefim folded the paper in his hand, threw it into the fireplace beside him, and smiled again.

The sound of the car engine could be heard again.

A man with a bloated appearance and an extremely arrogant demeanor walked in, perfectly embodying everyone's stereotype of aristocrats—fat and self-important.

"Oh, Yefim, I'm so glad you're hosting this banquet. I can't wait."

"Thank you for your kind words, Your Excellency the Chancellor of the Exchequer."

Igor Ulrich loosened his collar, and the door behind him opened once again.

"Oh, I never expected to see you, Alexander. It seems we'll be working together again, which is quite a rare occasion."

"I would rather never see you, Igor."

Tall and slender Alexander Ivanov did not look well. As the secretary-general of Speaker Witt, he was quite disgusted with Igor, the aristocratic finance minister—even though they had graduated from St. Eagle University together.