Chapter 1770: Chapter 1006: Don’t Block the Way
When Angel left the Kafiora family, her face was adorned with a smile.
They had surrendered.
Of course, this was expected. After all, whether they truly surrendered or were planning to comply superficially while resisting covertly, their current choice would be to agree.
Unless they had a death wish.
But the probability of that was too low.
As for how they would choose afterward... actually, Angel cared more than she let on.
After all, if the Kafiora family wasn’t truly obedient, it would lead to trouble later on, all of which would fall on her as the Chief Executor.
Although she believed that in the ensuing battles of wit, victory would undoubtedly be hers. After all, she was experienced in such ’settlement’ tasks and backed by a strong Alliance, winning was inevitable.
However, it would ultimately consume considerable time, seriously slowing her efficiency.
What she was dealing with wasn’t just the native families of Indinea’s Nest Capital but all across Holy Terra, encompassing thousands of Nest Capitals.
Of course, not every Nest Capital had powerful local aristocratic families. Nor did each require her intervention.
There were dozens like her, specialized in dismantling the local aristocracy on Holy Terra as ’Chief Executors’ or ’Senior Executors’. Among them, the scope of authority was quite similar, and so was the work content.
But among them, besides being colleagues cooperating and sharing intelligence, undeniably, there was also strong competition among them.
After all, the position of Deputy Minister at the Imperial Central Legal Department had only two or three possible promotions this time, making it very competitive.
Moreover, Angel realized that this promotion wasn’t just about who used the more ruthless methods, who was quicker or accomplished more, thereby winning.
What they were vying for was the ’Deputy Minister’ position, counted as a high-ranking official of the Empire. In such competition, if it’s merely about quickness and quantity, it would only qualify them as efficient removers at best.
To get promoted, a sufficient degree of political sensitivity was needed, and the ability to handle their affairs well.
Although having a sharp blade in hand, if everywhere they go results in bloody turmoil, it would lead upper management to seriously doubt their political capability;
But excessively placating everywhere, only to leave a mess afterward, would directly end their political career.
The grasping of this scale was quite challenging.
But Angel had some insights.
The key point was understanding what the Alliance or the New Empire truly desired.
Was it the lives or money of these aristocratic families?
No.
Money had no meaning to the New Empire.
Nor did they need the lives of these aristocrats. After all, those currently active in the imperial political arena, those aristocratic families and local interest groups, either shed blood and made an effort during the Terra War or, at the very least, delineated from Chaos, did not turn to darkness.
That period during the Terra War, when various Nest Capitals fell en mass, with Chaos corruption raging, they indeed managed this. These aristocrats of the Imperial Capital showed some spine more or less.
The stereotype of them being corrupt, extravagant, and excessively lavish is true. Simultaneously, it doesn’t hinder the fact that they indeed are elites among humans, maintaining their principles on major issues despite having fallen individuals.
Raising the butcher’s knife directly towards these people is inappropriate.
Even without considering their past achievements, these individuals, having received the best education from a young age, seen the larger world, and been tempered by the Terra War, are indeed talented—the premise being their intelligence and wisdom are not used wrongly.
Slaughtering such people entirely would be a huge loss.
Moreover, the Alliance never executes those who have contributed.
The premise is, they mustn’t obstruct the path.
Aspiring to be officials is acceptable;
Desiring to run enterprises is fine;
Even simply wanting to be idle and rely on historical contributions and economy to live comfortably without doing anything is barely tolerable.
But what the Alliance absolutely cannot accept is these families still controlling the means of production at the grassroots level of society, forming an entrenched economic-political cycle as interest groups.
Looking at it from afar, in a broader sense, this will severely threaten the New Empire’s regime.
Currently, it’s not apparent because, having just been through the war’s trials, these families are severely weakened, politically also marginalized due to the Alliance’s entry, Infinite Starfield’s pressure, and insufficient positions available, appearing in decline. But in the long run, they will gradually rely on their grasp at the grassroots level of society to climb back up.
Whoever controls productivity is the holder of the societal grassroots.
The Alliance framework is meant to operate on Holy Terra. If it’s not intended to run as an empty shell, these interest groups must be dismantled.
This is irrelevant to their obedience.
Currently, they are indeed obedient because the war just ended, the New Empire is newly established, they have yet to grasp, yet to establish new societal rules of the game. The authority of the Alliance is also profound enough.
But who can guarantee they will always be compliant?
Moreover, their so-called ’obedience’ is already something the Alliance finds hard to endure.
Take the conflict between development and expedition with the New Empire’s center—these local interest groups have very wavering stances.
Some people quickly became active-minded, attempting political maneuvers with their influence in the Nest Capitals. Some aimed at the Alliance, demanding benefits; some joined the Regent King’s side under the guise of supporting expeditions...
This situation is intolerable.
Moreover, even when these local interest groups produce according to the Central Government’s requirements, they have numerous conditions.
They love receiving government orders, but they accept conditioned on certain terms.
Profitable and easy tasks are undertaken by their own direct enterprises;
Average ones get subcontracted layer by layer, skimming profits for external enterprises to do, even requiring these civilian class entrepreneurs to sing praises, wag their tails, and beg for food;
Those with poor profits and difficulty, potentially losing money, they equally subcontract, forcing it upon unrelated or even adversarial enterprises and factories. They exploit if possible, reduce product quality, or outright fail to fulfill orders, conveniently shifting blame away, sentencing individuals and fining factories, unable to operate, leading to mergers...
This causes waste in overall efficiency and obstructs the Alliance’s development strategy.
Failing to act now and resolving these stubborn powerful families will only worsen and complicate the issue over time.
Meanwhile, ’consuming’ them enhances efficiency and increases output, crucial in resolving contradictions between the current Empire Government’s development strategy and the Regent King’s expedition strategy.
With greater resources and output, the expedition scale requested by His Highness the Regent King can be met faster.
Therefore, Gu Hang could persuade him.
News of complaints to the Legal Department, reaching the Regent King’s mansion, sunk without a trace. Even some high-status individuals finding their way to him received news that the Regent King was inspecting fleet training.