The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

"I am Anatoly Romanov, Lieutenant General of the Empire, Director of the Security Service of the Imperial Army."

As he spoke, he opened the document in his hand.

“You each have a document in front of you. These documents are for you to see only. You are not allowed to make any written records, discuss this matter with any subordinates, and report to your superiors only. All communications related to this matter must be made with Colonel Yefim. Any violator will be investigated by my Security Service—I guess nobody will like it.”

Most people wore expressions of unease, caution, and seriousness, clearly indicating that this meeting was not a simple matter.

However, the expressions of some individuals turned ugly.

"Can only communicate with superiors" means that superiors already know the situation, but just haven't told you.

"Let's get straight to the point—the Empire is facing serious economic problems, especially given that it has just experienced a major rebellion and is surrounded by enemy countries. With military needs being the top priority, it is necessary for us to optimize our current domestic policies."

"Therefore, considering the actual situation, some of the laws and policies that were too weak in the past have reached the point where they must be changed."

Oleg's expression darkened further. He knew his hunch was right; these guys had called him here to break into imperial law.

"The Empire possesses the most expansive territory on this land and a population second only to the Great Yan. Therefore, we believe it is necessary to set an example to guide the choices of the nations of Terra. For example—in their attitude towards the Infected."

Qiao Yelan narrowed his eyes. He had only turned a few pages of his documents, but Anatoly's words gave him a bad feeling.

"The empire's population is composed of multiple races, and there are no racial laws. Discrimination between races is strictly prohibited. This is the attitude that a unified country should have. However, infected people should not be treated the same as healthy citizens."

Anatoly still wore a warm smile, but the words that came out of his mouth were beginning to send chills down one's spine.

"Therefore, when the Empire is in trouble, I think it is time to take the excess mercy away from these scum and use it in a way that is more beneficial to the Empire."

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Ursus's Great Wisdom

"According to imperial procedures, the issue you raised should be submitted to the Imperial Diet, which is my department, for review. It can only be voted on in the Diet after His Majesty has reviewed it, rather than being raised privately by a group of people—"

"Excuse me, Mr. Secretary-General, I am not finished speaking yet."

Anatoly interrupted Alexander and, ignoring his question, continued speaking on his own.

Anger flashed across Alexander's face, and he was about to lash out when Qiao Yelan grabbed his arm.

He looked at Qiao Yelan with a puzzled expression, only to find that the other party was waving the documents in his hand.

Page four.

Alexander lowered his head, ignoring Anatoly's description of how the infected were a burden on the empire, and turned directly to page four of the document—

Then the color drained from his face.

The infected have become a serious problem, and the Empire must take immediate military action to prevent the situation from becoming irreversible.

Therefore, I authorize Lieutenant General Anatoly Romanov to handle this matter entirely by military order. All levels of government agencies and the garrison must fully cooperate, and Lieutenant General Romanov is permitted to form a special operations force of no more than 12,000 men.

The signature was Nikolai Romanov.

Anatoly's father.

Alexander looked up and saw Anatoly looking at him. Only after seeing that Anatoly did not ask any questions did he gesture for everyone to open the documents.

"Please turn to page four. There is a handwritten oral instruction there. That should answer your question, Mr. Secretary-General?"

The man remained silent, head down, continuing to read the documents.

"Thank you."

He lowered his voice and said something to Qiao Yelan.

Without a doubt, Anatoly was probably waiting for him to ask the question, then to severely dampen his momentum and establish his authority.

Alexander's anger subsided, and he began to listen attentively to Anatoly's statement.

He wanted to hear what kind of plan the other party could come up with to deal with the infected people.

"We must expel the infected from existing cities and towns, or at least prevent them from potentially affecting the lives of normal citizens, or in other words, prevent the spread of Oripathy through infected individuals."

"Then I would like to ask, after they are expelled, how will you ensure they have a new, suitable living environment and enough resources to survive?"

Qiao Yelan managed to hold Alexander back, but he couldn't hold Oleg back.

The judge questioned Anatoly with overwhelming anger.

"The Empire will guarantee the life of every citizen and their right to survival. Even serfs will be protected by the Serfs Amendment Act—a law I personally drafted! They are also the Empire's valuable assets. Every citizen is a contributor to the Empire, not someone to be expelled and left to fend for themselves!"

Anatoly looked at the furious Oleg, his smile undiminished.

"Then let's add another 'Infected Persons Amendment Law' to make the social rights of these infected people lower than those of serfs."

There was silence.

Qiao Yelan closed the file and tossed it onto the table.

BYD made me laugh in anger.

There was no need to look anymore. Anatoly had only said two sentences, and through those two sentences, he had already figured out the other party's true intentions—

What genius came up with the caste system?

Imperial nobles – Imperial army – free people – serfs: this was originally a pyramid-shaped conventional social system, and it has always been the state of the Ursus Empire.

This structure only saw its first glimmer of change under Vladimir, as he tirelessly converted serfs into free citizens, and even planned to wage a war of annihilation to free all serfs and thus eliminate slavery in Ursus.

Of course, Qiao Yelan abruptly cut off the dream that followed, but there was no doubt that the pyramid structure had begun to crumble, because the number of the lowest serf class had been reduced to less than the number of free people.

In fact, Vladimir had already succeeded, because he opened up upward mobility for slaves, letting them know that it was possible to rise above their circumstances and motivating them to work harder. The increase in free citizens, on the other hand, gave the emerging bourgeois aristocracy cultivated by Qiao Yelan a taste of success, and thus they too vigorously promoted this cause.

Therefore, as long as the emperors afterward insist that serfs can be converted into free citizens, the huge positive feedback will cause the entire serf class to begin to transform automatically. The inertia alone will crush all the nobles who still oppose this. Although it will take a long time, Vladimir's dream will eventually be realized.

This is also the basis for Qiao Yelan's visit to the young emperor this time—he intends to give the young emperor a Longzhong Plan, so that he can continue to promote the de-slavery movement. Furthermore, he will use the identity of the Babel Tower Merchant Guild to take advantage of the great trade route to win over the emerging nobles to support the young emperor and confront the traditional nobles head-on.

As a result, the old folks pulled a fast one, almost making Qiao Yelan jump out of her wheelchair and punch them twice.

The worst part is that both the old guys' plans and Qiao Yelan's plans can solve the current problems in Ursus.

Because the vast majority of those infected who were demoted by this plan were free citizens.

The reason is simple—an infected serf is still a serf, and the noble lords will not abandon you as a source of labor just because you are infected.

These infected individuals are spread across various industries, and as free citizens, they certainly possess enough wealth and means of production to support themselves.

While the wealth that can be extracted from this group might not completely transform Ursus, it should at least help them weather this difficult period.

What's even more troublesome is that many young and middle-aged infected people may be intercepted by nobles and turned into serfs during this process. This leads to the expansion of the serf class and a worse living environment for the infected people, while allowing the nobles to close off the serfs' upward mobility without any scruples.

Yes, the noble lords have killed any possibility of you rising to become free citizens, but we've created an even lower class for you. Go and find happiness in bullying them!

After you're happy, you still have to work hard for me, Master.

What? You're unhappy? Then I'm going to make you fall even further down the serf class.

These nobles are no ordinary insects; we must strike hard!

He glanced at Alexander, who was clenching his fists, and Oleg, who was even angrier, then picked up the water glass in front of him, poured himself a glass, and prepared to unleash his power.

Let's see how I fan the flames!

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Debate

"I don't see any problem with this. For the sake of their own health, everyone would be willing to get rid of these guys—does anyone want to get Oripathy?"

Igor said it casually.

Oleg didn't even bother to look at him, his eyes fixed on Anatoly.

Are you humiliating me?

“Absolutely not, Judge Oleg. You are the best judge in Ursus, and your achievements are evident to all present.”

"How dare you say such a thing to me? I've spent half my life researching and drafting laws for the people of Ursus, and now you want me to accept such an absurd and ridiculous plan?"

Oleg stood up abruptly and slammed his hands heavily on the table.

“Any document that is called ‘law’ must apply to both law enforcement and civilians—our Chancellor of the Exchequer just said that everyone is willing to expel infected people, so I ask you, what should be done if a nobleman is infected with Oripathy?”

"Are you willing to relinquish your noble privileges in order to deal with the infected? Or are you going to throw those infected serving in the Imperial Army, including many mid- to high-ranking officers, into the abyss as well, Lieutenant General Anatoly?"

Oleg's imposing presence immediately overwhelmed the others, and Igor shut his mouth.

Yefim immediately turned to look at the clerk, who promptly raised both hands off the typewriter to indicate that he had stopped recording. Then he picked up the document and tried to smooth things over.

"Uh, I mean, there are always exceptions, like special pardons, for nobles and soldiers—"

"Yes, Judge Oleg, there will be no more discrimination, including them. All, all, all infected people will be regarded as 'untouchables' below serfs."

At this moment, even Igor was shocked.

“I’m sorry, Lieutenant General Anatoly, your plan is undoubtedly challenging us—I think I can also represent the interests of some nobles, but your proposal has infringed on the privileges belonging to the nobles, and you are shaking the foundation of the country.”

"Everyone's opinions will be taken into consideration, please rest assured."

Anatoly first smiled and glanced at Igor.

"But I hope the Finance Minister understands one fact: any animal with two heads will die quickly—or do you want to say publicly that the nobles you represent believe that Grand Duke Nicholas's orders are inappropriate?"

Igor's fat sagged, and he pursed his lips, forcibly shifting his gaze to Judge Oleg.

“There will be some exceptions. The Imperial Military will build some camps to centrally house those infected who have made special contributions to the Empire. We will provide them with a suitable living environment and supplies.”

Anatoly continued speaking to Oleg.