Doctor Amnesiac, but not completely amnesiac

What smuggling? This is clearly robbery!

Chapter 169 How come you don’t even know capitalism?

Speaker Witte looked at Qiao Yelan with horror in his eyes, but he couldn't stop feeling frustrated in his heart.

The means used by the other party in smuggling actually have nothing to do with oneself at all, so don't even think about tripping them up. If one still wants to act secretly in this situation - the other party is definitely not an easy person to deal with.

Moreover, Qiao Yelan has made it clear that he wants to take the military route. If he dares to do anything small, I'm afraid Nicholas will be the first one to disagree.

He could only force himself to turn his attention back to the transaction between him and the other party, otherwise he would not be able to resist snatching the check back from the other party.

“I need a detailed account of that [Workers’ Army] plan.”

Qiao Yelan nodded, put the [Ursus Industrial Transformation Plan] in his hand into the file bag, and then took out a new file bag from his bag.

"This is the original document of the plan. I'm sorry that I can't leave it to you, nor can I allow you to copy it by any machine. Either you memorize it all or make a copy by hand. In short, this plan has nothing to do with me."

Witt nodded solemnly. He certainly understood the significance of this plan, and he also knew that with Qiao Yelan's identity, it would be absolutely impossible for him to admit this.

However, the seriousness of the matter made him look forward to the plan even more.

He took the document and looked at it carefully.

Soon, he not only read, but also picked up his pen and began to copy the text word for word, and started to ask Qiao Yelan about his doubts.

“Why build large apartments as worker dormitories? Won’t this greatly increase costs?”

"You're wrong. This is actually a way to reduce costs. First of all, the workers don't need any artistic skills. As long as it's sturdy, durable, and heat-insulating, and the space is relatively spacious, it's enough for them. For a large apartment like this that doesn't require design and has a fixed formwork, the construction cost is just that."

Qiao Yelan talked to Witt freely.

"Secondly, this can significantly reduce the wages you need to pay. You only need to tell them that the rent of the house will be deducted directly from their wages - but as long as they work for ten years, you can give them the house. The workers will definitely not complain about their lower wages than other areas."

Witt showed an expression that said, "I didn't know there was a way to play it this way."

He suddenly felt that he was stupid for being so stingy with the workers' wages.

Look at how they play it. For at least ten years, the wages of these workers have been basically cut to the same level as serfs - the kind that will be enforced by the Imperial Ministry of Labor.

But the workers will not only have no complaints, they will probably even thank themselves.

“Once such a notice comes out, workers will take the initiative to start taking care of their future [homes]. Similarly, they will not mind spending their wages on their own homes. All you have to do is re-mark these related products at a lower [internal factory price], and you can get back part of the wages you paid out.”

"And the most important point is that although both men and women can enter the factory, it is impossible for children to appear in a room with 16 people crammed in it. You don't want these workers, or your reserve army, to be non-renewable resources, right?"

The man hadn't even finished his explanation when sweat began to form on Witt's forehead.

"Of course, after working for ten years and getting a house, most of these people already have a family. Since they have a family, they are even less likely to risk unemployment. At this time, the higher salary they receive can make them want to have and raise more children."

"Obviously, the plan of hiding troops in factories must be a long-term plan, and it will not be put into use until you and...your political enemies officially fall out. Therefore, children are of course necessary - they will maintain this plan generation after generation, and they will enter the factory generation after generation, fighting for new houses and new families."

What the fuck...

The Speaker glanced at Qiao Yelan cautiously.

The nobles exploited their subjects and serfs just for fun - if you really want to see exploitation, this is the guy.

The problem is...it seems that the people don't even resent such oppression.

Because even at this point, their lives will surely be several times better than their current lives.

He looked at the plan in his hand and suddenly felt it was so heavy.

He only asked one of the questions - Qiao Yelan could give him hundreds of times more explanations, and the interests and thoughts involved were even more horrifying.

Then there are these dozens of pages of plans...how much has this guy thought about?

He lowered his gaze and saw another sub-plan.

“…Why should we change the 12-hour two-shift system to an eight-hour three-shift system?”

"I think you should remember that an important indicator for workers to serve in the military is sufficient physical fitness. Work can ensure the intensity of their exercise, but there must be a limit to their working hours, otherwise the workers' physique may become too weak due to fatigue."

Qiao Yelan said casually.

"In addition, please turn to page 6, where there is another key point related to physical fitness - we must ensure that there is enough nutrition in the diet, so the factory should provide two meals of guaranteed quality and quantity during working hours, especially sufficient meat products."

"I must remind you of this. Collective catering procurement has always been a hotbed of small-scale corruption. If someone takes advantage of it, whether it is low-quality ingredients causing widespread food poisoning, or insufficient nutrition causing the workers' physical fitness to decline, that would be putting the cart before the horse."

Witt nodded silently.

He didn't know whether he should continue watching.

For a moment, Speaker Witte even wanted to close the plan and throw all the funds and resources to Qiao Yelan, asking him to help him get it done, and he would just lie down and wait for news.

Damn it, other people’s operations are right in front of me and I can’t understand them, what’s so good about it?

If the other party creates a loophole and wants to trap you, can you see it?

If this loophole was not created by the other party, then it would be even more terrible.

But in the end, he suppressed his urge to give up and read the plan carefully.

"Oh, right, it says here that these... uh, [welfare measures], including collective housing, low-priced goods, meals at work, and the subsequent construction of hospitals and schools in workers' settlements, must be announced and constructed by the [Imperial General Labor Union] newly established by the Imperial Ministry of Labor - what exactly does this union do?"

Qiao Yelan smiled.

This is a wonderful tool that will be used in the future.jpg

Of course, our dear Speaker Witte doesn't need to know so many details.

"This is of course to put the blame back on our respected Tsar."

This explanation instantly attracted Werther's full attention.

"As you said before, there will be some 'serfs of unknown origin' who need to be registered in the name of the Imperial Ministry of Labor. Obviously, you also understand that at this time we need to divert the blame and let His Majesty the Emperor stand in the forefront and confront the nobles. But the nobles are not stupid, they will know that this is your doing."

He said some extremely treasonous words, but it was obvious that neither the speaker nor the listener cared much about the title of emperor.

"The same is true for the [Imperial General Labor Union] - at present, after the death of His Majesty Vladimir, most of the empire's industrial heritage is actually in the hands of these nobles. Therefore, most of the empire's active workers, like serfs, are in the hands of the nobles."

"There is no doubt that these workers are not fools. They will use their best wisdom to ensure their survival. So they will soon find that if they come to work in our factories, their income and survival will at least be guaranteed."

A gleam of light flashed in Witt's eyes, and he immediately cursed himself for being stupid.

To deal with serfdom, one must confront the nobles. The fastest way to achieve results is to make these free workers want to change jobs!

"Therefore, this series of measures must be handled by the Imperial Ministry of Labor. This is because the nobles will think that this is the order of His Majesty the Emperor and that you are just being forced to follow orders. So their opposition due to the loss of workers will be directed towards His Majesty."

Qiao Yelan spread out his hands with a smile on his face.

"Look, you take the lead in robbing the farmers, and your Majesty takes the lead in robbing the workers. Everyone shares the benefits and conflicts equally. This way, we don't have to worry about who will abandon whom, right?"

The Speaker couldn't help but nodded, then realized his gaffe. He coughed softly in embarrassment, and there was a bit of heat in his eyes as he looked at Qiao Yelan.

Such a talent...how can it be enjoyed by Fyodor alone!

He pondered on this.

Judging from the other party's tone, it was obvious that he did not have much respect for Fyodor, and Qiao Yelan had long said that the only thing that could move him was money - there was no doubt that this was a power that could definitely be fought for!

It seems that I have to invest more in industrial reform!

On the one hand, this can show goodwill to Qiao Yelan, and on the other hand, it can temporarily ease the relationship with Fyodor - at the same time, this can bring back greater profits for himself in the foreseeable future.

In this way, he could take advantage of Fyodor's carelessness and reach more cooperation with Qiao Yelan.

Speaker Witte is a civil servant after all, so in his mind, it is better not to use the army if the problem can be solved slowly by money and political means.

He made up his mind - at worst he would just rely on money to get a way out of Qiao Yelan and carve out a smooth path for himself to the pinnacle of power in Ursus!

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"Your Majesty, Speaker Witte has agreed to our cooperation proposal."

Qiao Yelan's report brought a hint of joy to Fyodor's face. He stared at Qiao Yelan and asked the question he wanted to know most.

"Didn't he make any additional demands?"

"The Speaker just wanted to add one more deal and asked me to come and inform His Majesty."

"What deal?"

"He hopes to reach a cooperative deal with Minister Yegor. In the future, some workers may be transferred to the Imperial Ministry of Labor. Of course, these people will only work for Speaker Witte, but he will also pay the employment fees according to regulations."

A flash of doubt flashed across the emperor's face, and then he understood what the other party meant.

Obviously, these "workers" mentioned by Witt have big problems with their identity.

Fyodor thought about it for a moment and a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Qiao Aiqing, do you think we should agree to this deal?"

"Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, this matter may as well be approved."

"Oh why?"

Hearing this answer, the emperor showed no expression on his face, but continued to ask questions.

"Your Majesty, industrial reform naturally means the expansion of factories and the increase of jobs, which is beneficial to the people of the empire. But for Witte, it actually means gradually diluting their weight in the empire's industry. It seems to be beneficial to them in the short term, but from a strategic point of view, it will only gradually squeeze them out."

"So what Witt wants to do is to completely control a certain factory as much as possible and achieve a complete monopoly, so that he doesn't have to worry. But this requires a lot of capital investment, and most importantly, he needs a lot of [factory serfs] of his own."

Fedor nodded. Most of the people working in Witte's factory were registered workers in the Imperial Ministry of Labor. As long as Fedor gave the order, these people would be directly withdrawn from the factory, and then a large number of factories would be completely shut down.

In other words, the key to the workers' strike is actually in the hands of the emperor - even though the two sides are far from falling out, these guys are always worried.

Witt and his men naturally wanted to change this situation, or at least take the lifeline of their wealth back from the emperor's hands.

"Your Majesty, this is actually good news for us."

Qiao Yelan said with a smile.

"What do you mean by that, my dear?"

"The fact that Speaker Witte raised this opinion actually proves one thing, which is that he is actually very short of people. The other party actually exposed his weakness at this time, which obviously shows that he is very eager to participate in our industrial reform plan."

Fyodor's eyes also lit up.

It seems...that's exactly the truth!

Chapter 170: All-round robbery

This is certainly good news.

Any exploitation or instructions cannot compare to the other party's genuine pursuit of interests.

"Now, we can trust each other - because at least on this industrial reform, we have the same interests."

"Your Majesty is right."

Qiao Yelan said respectfully.

Fyodor was still thinking at this time.

"Qiao Aiqing, what do you think Witte will do to make up for his shortcomings now?"

Qiao Yelan nodded slightly, thought for a while, then looked up at the emperor.

"Your Majesty, now the Empire's open labor force is almost entirely controlled by the Empire's Ministry of Labor, and Witt certainly understands that if he continues to rely on the Ministry of Labor as his source of employment, his situation will not improve at all."

"In this case, he must find a new source of labor. These people must lack the means to make a living and be extremely dependent on this job. Only in this way can they be controlled by him. So what he can do is to find a way to get the labor force in the hands of the nobles into his own hands."

Qiao Yelan's answer was the same as what Fyodor thought, and he nodded slightly.

"The labor force in the hands of the nobles includes serfs and some free people, so I believe the other party will take a two-pronged approach and attack from both levels at the same time."

"As for the serfs, the Empire has banned the slave trade, so Witte can only do some transactions privately. Whether in terms of scale or quantity, it is definitely not enough to meet his needs. So the simplest way is to incite the serfs to...rebel, and then help them escape from the nobles' territory."

Qiao Yelan carefully considered the words he used to describe his current class.

"As for the freemen, he can use better wages to lure them to come to his factory to work. But at the same time, these people are unlikely to rely solely on this job. After all, they can work for Witt because of the salary, and naturally they can leave him because of the salary."

"So I believe that Speaker Witte's focus must still be on how to turn more serfs into nominal freemen, and then continue to work as serfs in his factories."

Fyodor nodded. Qiao Yelan's explanation made him feel relieved.

The only serfs left in the empire were those in the noble territories, and without war, there was little hope of obtaining new slave laborers from outside Ursus - so if Witte and his men wanted to obtain serfs, they could only find a way from the nobles.

But the nobles were very frugal with all their wealth.

Perhaps at the beginning it could be done by means of purchase or exchange, but this would have a limit, and soon the nobles would raise the price, or simply refuse to sell.

The deal proposed by Witte was obviously to provide a legal identity for those serfs of "unknown origin" who would inevitably appear in the future.