People in Terra, governing a weird little country

"Does Rhine Life know of a publishing house in Columbia?"

Christen nodded: "I know her. Many scientific magazines have cooperated with Rhine Life Science. Are you going to publish a scientific research paper? I can help you review it..." At this point, her voice suddenly stopped, and then she changed the topic and said, "I can ask Nastie to help you review it."

Reviewing papers is too troublesome, so she wants to focus on aerospace.

As for Nasty, although she seems to be busy, who can blame Kristen for being the boss? The one who loves work the most in the company often gets more work.

Ernst was touched by Kristen's frankness, but he didn't like what she said very much.

I look like such an innocent cheese snow leopard, do I look like someone who can publish a paper like that?

The one who should contact you with this request should be Kal'tsit, the cheese lynx who is busy making Rhodes Island famous. However, since she hasn't mentioned this matter yet and hasn't thought about giving Ernst a kickback, Ernst decided to hold it in for a while, and wait until this commission is over before telling Kal'tsit about this and taking advantage of her favor for free.

Ernst explained: "I'm not talking about those highly professional scientific magazines. Are there any publishers that are more inclined towards the general public?"

Kristen was silent for a moment, then nodded hesitantly.

She didn't know much about the entertainment books and magazines that Ernst called "mass-oriented", and her sensitivity to fashion trends was regrettable. She was even commented on by Muir-Seth, "Don't think that just because there are new materials that are good at dissipating heat and keeping warm, you can wear the same clothes all year round!"

But just because she doesn't understand doesn't mean she doesn't know someone who does.

In addition to the fashion icon Muir Seth just mentioned, Yara, the head of the Human Resources Department who played the role of foster mother to Kristen after her parents passed away, is a big name in this industry.

Even though the Colombian actress has retired from the screen for many years, she still maintains relevant channels.

"What do you want to publish?" Christen asked curiously, showing a rare interest in something that was not in the aerospace field.

Ernst did not hide anything and introduced: "Have you read my novel, The History of the Nations of Ersle?"

Kristen recalled for a moment, then shook her head mercilessly under Ernst's expectant gaze:

"No. I haven't heard of the book."

No wonder Muirseth asked me how I was doing in Kjerag. Your sharp tongue can easily get you into trouble.

Who did you learn this from?

Saria, step out!

Is there something wrong with you two Rhine partners? Is the absolute value of your combined emotional intelligence enough to exceed the height of the Matterhorn?

Whoops, just kidding.

Ernst was mentally prepared that someone like Christen, who had clear goals and focused on nothing, was unlikely to have read his novels. But that didn't matter, as his "Ers - The Legend of King Arthur" was not intended for the upper class.

"I would like to use the channels of Rhine Life to publish my new work in Columbia."

"In return, the Kjerag government will cover Ms. General's daily expenses in Kjerag. In addition, I will also give a small reward personally."

Christen nodded. She didn't really care about the small amount of money for daily expenses, but she was somewhat interested in Ernst's personal reward.

This prime minister has given her many surprises, whether it was the bold offer of a clearly unmarketable deal to her on the condition of establishing a scientific research station on the Matterhorn, or helping Rhine Life perfectly resolve the Balrog incident in her absence, and even making further progress in influence.

Kristen is very smart. She is not unaware that in some transactions, she actually suffers a loss, but she is willing to take this loss.

In order to break through the barrier and get out of Terra, she would not frown even if she had to burn the entire Rhine to ashes.

So, she was curious about what the prime minister would give herself as private compensation.

"I'll let Muerseth contact you then." She smiled a little on her cold face and said slowly, "If Muerseth can't satisfy you, you can still seek help from Yara. She has a wealth of connections and experience in this area."

"So, can you tell me what your [Personal Gift] is?"

............

On the way back to his house, Ernst was still a little scared.

Christen's interest in aerospace should not be underestimated. He had already overestimated it as much as possible, but he still made some preparations and called out the few "common sense" in his mind before he opened his mouth. However, he was still almost speechless by Christen, who didn't even have this "common sense".

No, it should be said that there was no "almost", he was indeed speechless. It was just that Kristen's emotional intelligence, which was very high in absolute value, suddenly came to her senses. Seeing Ernst's embarrassed expression, she took the initiative to stop asking questions. Otherwise, if she asked one more question, Ernst would probably fall silent on the spot.

Ernst did his best. To popularize what a "star", "planet", "satellite", "galaxy" is, and why the stars in the sky sparkle without revealing the Earth, was actually not as simple as "teaching elementary school science" as he imagined.

Because the person standing opposite her is a know-it-all who is more terrifying than a hundred thousand whys.

Especially at the end, facing the meaningful look from Christen and the soul-searching question "Did you also learn this knowledge from Yelagund?", Ernst felt a long-lost feeling of sweating.

However, at least it was dealt with. Because it did not involve specific parameters or experimental methods, but only some celestial knowledge, Ernst was not worried that it would have any impact on Christen's space experiments, or that a word would lead her research in the wrong direction. It seemed that Christen was also quite satisfied with this gift.

In the end, it is undoubtedly a win-win situation.

"We've already got the Columbia channel. As for Victoria's channel, although Daphne and Lavshini both want to help with the publication of Ers, after careful consideration, it's better to choose the Duke of Caster."

Firstly, Duke of Kast had already told Ernst at the banquet that if Ers published a new work in the future, she would be willing to act as the agent for promotion. If Ernst pretended to forget at this time, it would be a disgrace to Duke of Kast and she would not get any benefit.

Secondly, if he could keep things in balance, Ernst didn't want to ruin his relationship with the Duke of Castor. After all, his channels were not comparable to those of the Duke of Windermere, who focused on military affairs, or the sisters Lavishne and Abrana, who did not act so openly.

It's strange to say, but it's understandable that Daphne wanted to help him publish Ers in Victoria. After all, the two have a good relationship, and for the little prince, it's just a piece of cake.

But why did Ravshini suddenly join in the fun?

In Ernst's interactions with Lavishne, Lavishne should be a shy, introverted, but very strong girl. Even if she has some literary attributes, she wouldn't take the initiative to compete with Delphine, right?

This is strange, what's going on?

Chapter 210: Kjerag's Observation Diary

Ernst did not keep a diary, but Joyce did.

The time from Colombia to Kjerag was an incredibly wonderful experience for her.

In fact, when Joyce first received the notice from Ernst that he wanted her to serve as Kjerag's Minister of Finance, she was a little hesitant and timid.

Her experience in school had nothing to do with finance in a strict sense, and she knew nothing about economics, finance and other majors at Columbia University, which were "full of talents". But Ernst still insisted, entrusted this position to her and gave her the greatest encouragement.

"Every college student will go through this stage after entering the society. An old senior I know once said to me: To truly become a member of society is not as simple as graduating from college. When you can abandon the bookish air in you and learn to realize that you are just a brick that can be moved wherever needed, you can be said to have truly graduated from your student days."

These were Ernst's sincere words. The old senior he mentioned once gave him an example.

A college student who just graduated from accounting major entered a foreign company as an accounting intern. He was full of ambition and was about to follow the example of movies and TV series such as "Anti-Corruption Storm" and "Audit Storm" and embark on a thrilling and epic corporate accounting journey. However, on the first day of the corporate internship training, the first thing he was taught was how to balance the accounts.

This is still good. Although the ideal and reality are opposite, at least they are on the same track, just running in the opposite direction. The more common situation is that a student who studies a related major will never find a satisfactory job that matches his major after graduation. Everyone is moved to a position that the company needs, not the position they want, and starts their life from scratch. Until the very end, all majors are transferred to the civil service examination.

"Besides, if you really understood economics, I wouldn't have let you be the Chancellor of the Exchequer."

The Minister of Finance is not only in charge of finance, just like the Ministry of Revenue in ancient China was not only in charge of money. Controlling silver means controlling everyone's lifeblood and the foundation of government operation. In addition to the Ministry of Personnel, which can directly influence personnel transfers, the Ministry of Revenue can be said to be the most powerful department and the best lucrative job.

Many people who study economics have fallen into the so-called "dogmatism", always thinking about the market, supply and demand, and how to make more money, but ignoring the most important point: as the center of gold and silver circulation and the focus of contradictions, what you need to do is actually to make the "distribution of spoils more balanced" and maintain the balance of various departments and internal stability.

From this point of view, the university student Joyce White-Faced Owl fully meets this condition. She is based in Columbia, has no vested interests with anyone in Kjerag, and only takes orders from Ernst.

Because of her oripathy, or maybe just because of a college student's simple sense of justice and responsibility, she takes her job very seriously. Even now, with the financial department's cash flow increasing, she still completes all her work perfectly and on time, like a diligent AI that never makes mistakes.

She almost never appears in the spotlight, but she is the behind-the-scenes hero of the entire Kjerag.

Ernst was very satisfied with her. As for her concerns about her professional level, Ernst was very generous: "If you feel that you are not good enough, then practice more. When you meet someone after three days, you will be treated with new eyes."

Of course, Miss Joyce did not want nothing. In addition to the salary and bonus that Ernst had arranged for her to be a regular employee, she was also very diligent in writing her own diary, "Joyce Moore's Kjerag Observation Record".

"April 1094, 4. Clear weather, light breeze, and comfortable temperature (based on Kjerag's relative humidity over the years)."

Writing down the diary headings meticulously and adding bracketed notes for every word and sentence that might cause ambiguity is Joyce's personal writing style.

After thinking for a while, Joyce added another sentence behind this date:

"The sixteenth day since Prime Minister Ernst Shivaash returned to Kjerag."

"Chancellor Ernst always travels a lot. In just one year, he has visited several countries and interacted with many surprising figures."

"Three days ago, Mr. Ernst's sister, Saint Enya, asked Ernst: The reconstruction of Tukarim also needs someone to take charge of the overall situation. Why can't you stay in Shelagh longer?"

"She seemed to be condemning her brother for being an irresponsible prime minister who had been away from the country for a long time, but I could see that Miss Enya was worried about Ernst. Recently, there have been several assassinations against local nobles in Leitania and Victoria, and there are constant rebellions within the Ursus Empire. Miss Enya doesn't want Ernst to continue to take risks. At least in Kjerag, where she can see him, she will feel more at ease."

"But Prime Minister Ernst refused firmly."

Joyce paused and put quotation marks around what she said next: "Chaos is the ladder to rise."

Ernst did say that peace and stability in the countries of the earth would be of great benefit to Kjerag's development, because a peaceful and stable international environment would ensure that Kjerag's main sources of foreign exchange - tourism, trade, etc. - would not fluctuate too much.

But this is not absolute.

If he could just slowly develop through farming, he could ensure that Kjerag could escape the fate of being "eliminated" before the next major reshuffle of Terra's forces, then the radicals led by Enthiotis would not be so anxious.

As a person who has studied dialectical materialism, Ernst is well aware that the international situation also needs to be viewed dialectically.

Peace and stability in the countries of the earth are good. But at the same time, a certain amount of unrest is also good. After all, the size is there, and even Tracy can realize that Kazdel can't compete with the development speed of the countries of the earth by relying on peaceful development alone. Only when there is a certain amount of unrest in their internal affairs will their attention be distracted, and these small countries will have the opportunity to overtake them.

Kjerag's advantage over Kazdel is that Kazdel, despite his desperate efforts, can at best become the one who "creates troubles", like walking a tightrope on a cliff. If he is not careful, he will attract the next wave of coalition forces from various countries, and become the target of the countries' internal conflicts through war. Kjerag, on the other hand, does not have that kind of worry. He can become the one who "solves troubles", proposes solutions, and appears in front of various countries with internal problems as a positive helper, winning favor, gaining benefits, resolving conflicts, and waiting for the next conflict to appear, and so on.

After all, contradictions are the unity of opposites. Although this road is not easy to walk on, once you start on it, it will definitely be a smooth road that will become wider and wider!

"I can see the disappointment on Miss Enya's face after hearing Prime Minister Ernst's explanation. She actually just wanted to find an excuse to let Ernst stay at home for a while longer."

"I think Prime Minister Ernst must have noticed it, but unfortunately he can only pretend not to notice it."

Joyce recalled the conversation she overheard at the door of Ernst's room, and with her rich imagination, she sketched out the scene at that time.

Miss Enya never had a sad face in front of Ernst. She was the last person to make Ernst worry. She must have been smiling, well, the kind of smile that was a bit reproachful and helpless:

"So, do you have to go to Rutland?"

Prime Minister Ernst would nod into Miss Enya's eyes and try to keep a firm expression. He always showed this expression in such private and official occasions, such as when he deducted Miss Holhaiya's salary for three months a few days ago for "official business":

"Yes."

Miss Enya will continue to ask, perhaps with a little curiosity and expectation: "So who are you going with this time?"

"Delphine and Vina."

Joyce couldn't imagine Ernst's expression here, because this was the first time that Ernst brought two people with him on such an outing.

Joyce's notes ended here. She first read her diary for today, then put a period to the entire diary and closed the notebook.

It's not that she didn't want to continue recording, but after saying this, her eavesdropping plan was discovered by the old butler in Shivaash's mansion.

It’s a pity that I didn’t hear Prime Minister Ernst explain why he chose Miss Vina and Miss Daphne.

Joyce pursed her lips with some regret, but she quickly adjusted her mood. Her serious face, which looked somewhere between innocent and cute, showed some excitement, and she took out another notebook from the desk.

This is a code book that is very popular among students. There is also a small combination lock on it. You need to slide the gears and align the combination to unlock it.

The protective performance is the same as Kjerag's. I'm just telling you that this book is confidential. The actual effect can be said to be better than nothing.

She skillfully opened the small code book, which contained a long list of names, all of whom were her colleagues in Kjerag's government and acquaintances Kjerag knew.

From Ernst's brother Enthiotis, to the defense secretary Mr. Jeston who was assigned to the defense minister Actor, to the saints Enya and Miss Yaer, everyone's name was listed. And after their names, there was a long list, like a classified table.

This was originally a little secret weapon she prepared after arriving at Kjerag, in order to avoid the embarrassment of not being able to remember the names of her colleagues. After Ernst's advice of "practice more if you are not good at it", she began to use the people around her as the target of the list and began to practice.

Uncharacteristically licking her lips, Joyce found the column for Vina and Delphine and added another entry after their form - Visit to Rutland.

"In a blink of an eye, Miss Vina and Prime Minister Ernst have traveled so many times."

Looking at Vina's "far ahead" table, Joyce sighed and made a preliminary conclusion.

"Yes."

Chapter 211: Evangelista XI: Fainted by the Dog Duke

Rutland.

Integrate the world into one city, build a city for the world. Lateran's ideal is clear, which is to turn the holy city under their feet, where they live, into a true paradise on earth.

"But what exactly is heaven? Is it heaven if there is no poverty? Is it heaven if there is no discrimination? Is it heaven if there is no hatred, and if we respect the elderly as well as the young, is it heaven?"

The holy church was above his head, and the dull evening bells echoed along the corridor. The old man with white hair and beard was now living in a dim underground space.

In front of him, occupying an entire room, with unknown structure, unknown construction, unknown operating mode and unknown energy source, it was the [Law] machine that had protected Sakota for a thousand years. It was flashing with light, as if it was calculating and answering the questions from this [Saint (the Chosen One)].

But Pope Evangelista XI had been waiting for a long time, but still had not received even a single word of response from the Law.

“He” was indeed carrying out some eternal calculation, and was indeed trying to solve a problem that had never been solved before, but unfortunately, that problem had nothing to do with Evangelista XI. “He” would naturally not answer this question.

Evangelista XI seemed to have become accustomed to this process.

For him, asking questions about the Law was like the daily prayers of ordinary Lateran monks. It was a process of clarifying faith and questioning the heart.

So, he answered on his own: