Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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“Furthermore, I have a small suggestion regarding Your Majesty’s proposal…” Dinia said.

As she spoke, Isabel's eyes lit up.

The next day, Dinia found Ronan and told him what had happened.

“There’s no need. I’ve already thought it through. I’ll just study magic properly when I have free time,” Ronan said. “As long as I have something to do, it won’t be like that. There are already enough people.”

“If you don’t agree, believe me, she’ll make a scene,” Dinia said. “Actually, she cares about you. We’ve never considered these things.”

“What’s there to consider? What kind of woman would let a man go find another woman? That’s ridiculous.” Ronan couldn’t help but sigh. “Sigh, I’ll go talk to Anri myself.”

“Actually, you don’t need to do this. The organization has already decided that newcomers will not have permanent positions; they will all be temporary workers with a 30-year probationary period. Only after passing the assessment after 30 years can they be promoted to permanent positions.” As she spoke, Dinya herself laughed. “Anyway, temporary workers don’t have the same benefits as us civil servants.”

"Hahaha." Ronan laughed too. What the hell is this organization's research decision? Who came up with this nonsense?

Uh, it seems to be him, then it's alright.

Dinya then added, "Actually, I've figured it out too. The problem is that the nine of us are too equal. There's no pyramid structure to break down, which makes us very unstable."

Without realizing it, Ronan also lost his seriousness. "Your pyramid is too much. It's upside down. There are more civil servants with official positions than temporary workers."

“This is temporary,” Dinia said.

"No way, I don't have much energy," Ronan said.

"Therefore, temporary workers are not just randomly hired. They must have something to do. They can't just be idle and feel empty and lonely all day long. For example, this Queen Mother, in the words of our King, can serve as a maid and can also improve that longevity method."

Dinia said.

The method of achieving immortality is divided into two parts. One part is the Soul Transfer Technique, which is ingenious and unexpected, yet instantly recognizable. It's a skill that any highly talented mage can learn with time. The other part is Stefan's Magical Body Liquefaction Technique, which is much more difficult, something only the most gifted geniuses can master. Although Stefan was once the principal of a magic academy, he wasn't good at teaching, as was Astrid, who also learned this technique.

In Astrid's words, magic is something you can do with your hands, especially elemental magic. Just clap your hands and shout, and whatever you want will come to pass.

"Actually, the method of immortality is secondary; what we lack now is someone who can research the topic of magical talent."

Dinia added.

"I see." Ronan understood now.

He finally understood why Dinia was willing to support Ambrina's absurd proposal.

Dinia's desire for fairness never faded, and a crucial part of achieving this goal was giving everyone the opportunity to learn magic.

Among Ronan's group of women, only Agustina and Gloria are highly educated academics, and Astrid has the talent in this area. However, Agustina and Gloria are still a bit lacking, while Astrid is more focused on improving herself.

As for the others, only Ronan himself has some skill; the others are completely incapable of this.

Ambrina wanted temporary workers, while Dinia wanted research dogs.

As for being Ronan's woman, that was just a side effect.

“Then I’ll take that as your agreement,” Dinia said.

"You're trying to exploit women," Ronan said. In the future, there will probably be many temporary workers and unemployed workers.

Dinia, much like Ronan, refuted Ronan, saying, "This is not exploitation; it is about unearthing the long-forgotten treasure trove of women and allowing them to step onto the stage of history."

Didi is really becoming more and more like him, with a whole repertoire of talking techniques.

Is this what they call a couple looking alike?

However, there is some truth to this. Women are indeed a hidden treasure trove. Magical talent is not based on identity or gender; it is highly random. Theoretically, the ratio of magicians should correspond to the male-to-female ratio, but this is not the case in reality.

Therefore, there are indeed many women who are just missing an opportunity.

“No, that means Isabel might also support it; she’s always wanted to form a political party,” Ronan suddenly realized.

Although Isabel was good at intelligence work, it wasn't her ideal; she always wanted to form a political party.

“You’re right,” Dinia replied. “This journey should be more than just a trip.”

And that's how the matter was decided.

The Balkan Governor's Palace was not far from Suleiman's capital. Soon, Ronan and his party and the bearded Qasim and his party arrived at Suleiman's capital, which was Constantinople. You can call it Constantinople if you want, but it's not Istanbul.

The city currently has a permanent population of 500,000. Not counting the surrounding areas of the capital region, it used to be the largest city in the Western Continent. However, in recent years, it has been surpassed by the capital of the Kingdom of Phos. The population of Palistor has exceeded 600,000.

Upon arriving in the capital, the two groups separated, with the Rag slave girl remaining behind as a liaison.

Falek was using the bearded Qasim to meet with several Imperial Guard commanders whom Aziz had already spoken to, to discuss the next steps.

As for Ronan and his group, nobody cares; they can do whatever they want.

Thus, Ronan and his group embarked on a journey of eating and exploring.

"This place is nice. The working-class area is cleaner than that of Paristo," Dinia commented. Even after twenty years of rebuilding and constructing a lot of public infrastructure and launching two New Life Movements, the area outside the third ring road of Paristo is still dirty and chaotic, while Constantine, an ancient capital with a history of over a thousand years, is cleaner than the capital of the Kingdom of Fas.

One can imagine how glorious the old empire was back then, which also shows that the Suleimans were really not barbarians.

As they strolled through the streets, no one looked at them strangely. On the contrary, in the capital of the Kingdom of Phos, if you have a foreign face, you're already being watched.

"I smell it! Let's go buy some flatbread!" Ambrina exclaimed. She smelled the aroma of lamb flatbread, the dough spread with a generous layer of seasoned minced lamb, sprinkled with sesame seeds, and then baked. It smelled wonderful.

Chapter 646 Different Situations, the Power of Rumors, and Unfathomable Behavior

Suleiman's political landscape differed from that of the Ottomans in another timeline, a difference caused by the extraordinary power of magic.

In another timeline, the royal guards would riot and demand that the Sultan hand over the heads of the prime minister and the chief eunuch to quell public discontent.

However, this is impossible in this time and space. Although Suleiman uses combination magic, most combination magic is based on summoning or elements, so it still follows the pattern of the feudal dynasties of the Western Continent. The hereditary lords are families of summoning mages who can inherit their skills, while the lords' courtiers and the Sultan's ministers are elemental mages.

The prime minister is usually a magician, as are the officials. Eunuchs are slightly weaker, and are generally Rag slaves who have received totem enhancement.

The bureaucrats and eunuchs weren't exactly powerful, but they weren't people the Imperial Guard, whose majority of members were novice mages, could easily kill.

As is well known, Suleiman's combination magic is "taking the dross and discarding the essence," a kind of magic that can be said to have a low threshold or a high threshold. It is low-threshold because it simplifies some things and doesn't require learning a lot of things first; as long as you have talent, you can give it a try. It is high-threshold because doing so is risky; you might die while trying it.

Therefore, Suleiman, with its vast territory and population almost comparable to that of the Kingdom of Fas, the most populous country in the Western Continent, does not have as many people with extraordinary powers as it did two hundred years ago when Suleiman rampaged through Anatolia with its massive army.

Of course, there are quite a few, just fewer than in the Kingdom of Fas.

Suleiman was no match for the powerful nations of the Western Continent. The inferiority of its weapons and equipment and its tactical skills were secondary; the main problem was that Suleiman was a feudal state with a very weak mobilization capacity.

Besides these, there is another difference.

In another Ottoman era, jurists were the driving force behind the Praetorian Guard. In this era, many jurists, or scholars, are now directly involved in politics. Their means of participation are very simple: they participate in legislation. Because they also possess military power, they do not need to rely on other forms of force.

In general, the Imperial Guard in this world can "purge the court of treacherous officials and eliminate national traitors," but it's not that easy. It's not as simple as a few troublemakers in a coffee shop talking politics, going back to shift the blame, and calling on the brothers to attack.

But this doesn't seem to be a problem for Falek.

Constantinople was already rife with undercurrents and eerily quiet; as soon as she returned, she began spreading rumors.

Soon, news spread rapidly that the Sultan wanted to promote some mid-level officers of the Royal Guard to local positions, but the governors of various regions strongly opposed it and were preparing to rebel and besiege Constantinople.

Ronan and his group ate at any roadside barbecue restaurant and overheard the owner/chef discussing this matter with several regular customers.

Everyone was telling the truth, and many people panicked.

But in fact, they were completely wrong. First of all, the governors around Suleiman's capital were not hereditary. For example, Aziz was a Pasha, but as a nobleman, he inherited a "banner". Within Suleiman's system, hereditary governors were either far away, like in Egypt, or had no jurisdiction over them at all, like in Crimea.

Even if those who hold hereditary positions rebel, they cannot raise an army. The only way they can rebel is by refusing to pay taxes.

But how could ordinary people understand this? They just felt that if they were the governor, they would also rebel, so they firmly believed it.

As a result, ordinary people began to find ways to hoard supplies.

Meanwhile, the commanders of the various legions of the Imperial Guard, who controlled all kinds of businesses in the capital, made a fortune in ill-gotten gains. After making that money, they had the funds to provide welfare benefits to their subordinates.

When it comes to distributing welfare benefits, it's impossible to use one's own savings.

He then spoke candidly to the guards who were eager to become local officials, saying, "It's so much better to live a good life in the capital. Why go to the provinces? If you go there, won't you be going against the governors? Are the governors easy to mess with? It's different in the capital. If you have food to eat, your whole family will be fed. If you don't have a family, we'll find a way to arrange one for you. Don't believe the Sultan—no, I mean the treacherous officials who deceive the Sultan. They have terrible consciences."

Those below them actually knew that without them, could the legion commanders still run a monopoly? These legion commanders were the truly ruthless ones.

However, they could also sense the underlying meaning in the legion commanders' words: "I can ensure your whole family doesn't go hungry, but conversely, I can make your whole family starve to death. The consequences of not being my brother are severe; that little bastard Sultan can't protect you."

So the mid-ranking officers chose to remain silent. When the corps commanders urged them to cause trouble, they all said they were sick. But when it came to the Sultan's planned exam, they also said they were sick.

Don't ask, the answer is you're sick.

Based on just this one rumor, Falek ruined the leg that Sudan had just replaced with his own.

Next, there's the other leg: those scholars who want to step back and support a fully civil service system.

Another rumor has surfaced, saying that these scholars want to emulate the magicians of those countries in the Western Continent, withdraw from politics, become consultants for some business companies, and step in to resolve major issues.

This isn't actually a rumor; these scholars genuinely think this way. But saying it aloud changes everything. The commanders of the Imperial Guard were the first to object. What kind of consultants are they? Aren't they just here to steal business? Cutting off someone's livelihood is like insulting God.

The governors were also unhappy. The scholars were all highly respected within the church, unlike the foreigners like the Royal Guard. Doing business with them was much more difficult than dealing with the Royal Guard.

Something has to be done.

This threw the capital, Constantinople, into chaos.

The guards started gathering in the cafes again, chanting things like, "This is absolutely not something the Sultan wants to see ordinary citizens like us suffer."

"Traitors have deceived the Sultan."

"When the nation perishes, Heaven will punish the traitors."

Phrases like "the enemy is in the palace" were not directed at the scholars, but rather at the bureaucratic group, who are the most innocent party in the current chaos.

After all, scholars are not to be trifled with; not only do they enjoy a high status among the general public, but more importantly, they are truly capable fighters.

Scholars also began to take action, and interestingly, they did not target the Imperial Guard, who were clearly at odds with them in terms of interests.

Scholars do not have a hierarchical and well-structured organization, nor can just any member of the church be a scholar. Only those at the highest level can be scholars. They are few in number, not united, and do not have high-ranking cannon fodder under their command. It would be unwise for them to clash with the Imperial Guard.

As a result, scholars began to criticize the bureaucratic class, saying they were a bunch of treacherous officials who had bewitched the Sultan.

The bureaucrats were also bewildered. They hadn't done anything wrong, and they weren't even loyal to the Sultan. Why were they all being targeted?

But soon after, the governors also issued a statement, still targeting the bureaucracy.

As a result, the officials went on strike, and the central government was paralyzed.

The Sultan was stunned and completely at a loss. He couldn't even understand how the three factions—the Royal Guard, the scholars, and the lords—who should have been fighting each other, had suddenly formed a united front.

Chapter 647 We have a card, this is the card we've been waiting for, a twist after a twist.

Several more days passed, and although the situation in Constantinople was becoming increasingly tense, it did not affect people's business. In fact, because officials were on strike and not going to work, the guards did not even report for duty, and members of various banner families were also active everywhere, the business of restaurants on the streets was even better than before.

At that moment, Ronan and his group were also in a coffee shop.

Sipping coffee and eating sliced ​​cake, Ambrina joked, "This Sultan is so young, yet he's quite composed. He doesn't seem to be making any rash moves at all."

"Couldn't you just say he's a coward?" Isabelle retorted to Ambrina, as was her habit.

Zhao Yingqi, who has never been a big fan of coffee, held a cup of ridiculously expensive black tea and said, "I still don't quite understand why these three factions are all making trouble for those officials at the same time."

“Actually, they wanted to cause trouble for the Sultan, but they couldn’t do it,” Astrid said. She didn’t care about politics, but her understanding of this aspect was far superior to that of the average person, including Zhao Yingqi.

"Why?" Zhao Yingqi asked.

Ronan answered Zhao Yingqi's question, "Because Suleiman cannot exist without a Sultan. This country is a complex mix of groups, both geographically and militarily. The Royal Guard is an outsider, the governors act independently, and the scholars belong to one religion but have their own factions. Without a Sultan, there is no common leader, and the infighting will never stop, ultimately leading to the collapse of Suleiman, which would benefit no one."

"Targeting innocent officials was a way to force the Sultan to make a statement, as it wouldn't provoke a violent conflict or cause the situation to spiral out of control. However, he didn't. As a result, the officials also became unwilling to accept this. They didn't want to be the target of attacks, so they simply stopped doing it. If they can't afford to offend him, can't they at least avoid him?"

“I see.” Zhao Yingqi understood more or less. “However, in this way, the Sultan is out of options. His plan to incite the royal guards to fight against local forces and at the same time bring in scholars who occupy part of the legislative power as his allies has not only failed, but now even the officials are on strike. He has no manpower to do anything.”

At this point, Isabel corrected, "No, he has one more card, and everyone has one too."

“Isha is right, this Sultan still has people, he has influence,” Ashley chimed in.

“Eunuchs are manpower,” Elena said.

“The ownership of the female slave army is the key,” Agustina replied.

“That woman was probably just waiting for this Sultan to play this card.” Alice, who had been relatively quiet since arriving in Suleiman, spoke up. “Don’t be fooled by all the tricks she’s played; the core of her strategy is still the simplest one: directly find the person with the problem and get rid of them.”

"This Sultan will likely lead a group to find the leader of some scholar, using the female slave army as leverage to persuade him to support him," Golan said while stirring his coffee. "Then he'll quickly deal with the few Royal Guard commanders who are most at odds with him. Once those commanders are dealt with, the Royal Guard will no longer act rashly. The properties of those commanders will be distributed to other commanders as temporary appeasement and a bargaining chip. Afterward, he'll combine the strength of the Royal Guard and the scholars to suppress local forces and begin implementing a civil service system."

"If all goes well, it would be a spectacular comeback."

"Unfortunately, it won't go smoothly for him."

Dinia concluded with a remark.

The person in charge of that new totem enhancement technology was an inside man planted by Falek within the Sultan's inner circle.

Sudan's biggest card doesn't actually belong to him; in fact, it's a trap.

Three days later, Ronan, disguised, and Dinia, who had taken over Ronan's body, accompanied Falek to their target location.

Astrid, the all-around magician, and Ashley, the assassin, followed at a distance, ready to ensure Falek's safety should anything happen.

Sultan Selim IV, who was only 22 years old at the time, met with scholar Ahmed at a mosque called Osman. This was not a large, luxurious mosque in the city center, but a small one located in a remote rural area outside the city.