Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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Despite this whole commotion, the Territory Management Department still disagrees.

It just looks like it's frozen in place.

However, just two days later, a group of central officials came to persuade the Territory Management Department to agree to the matter.

Ultimately, although the kingdom's officials were selected through examinations, most of them were of noble birth and related to nobles in various regions.

There are two reasons.

On the one hand, the kingdom's civil service exams are very different from the imperial examinations of Seris. They cover a wide range of topics, including not only objective questions on subjects like mathematics and law, but also a large number of subjective questions that test comprehensive abilities such as logical reasoning and inductive reasoning. Given the current educational level of commoners, they simply cannot compete with those born into noble families.

On the other hand, nobles in this godforsaken place, the Western Continent, often die out because they can only have one wife. Other illegitimate children besides their wife's children have no right to inherit. So brothers, nephews, grandsons, and even nieces often have the opportunity to obtain titles. There are also lucky ones who become officials first and then nobles.

It is precisely because of this relationship that so many central officials are eager to abolish the Territory Administration Department, a gathering place for commoner officials.

The Minister of Territory Management had no choice but to report the matter to the King and the Prime Minister for a decision.

Therefore, this matter entered into a public consultation process.

That night, Ronan went alone to a small tavern.

The person who invited him was none other than the current Prime Minister, Alexander.

"It's an honor, and a bit of a surprise." These were Ronan's first words after sitting down.

Alexander poured Ronan a small glass of wine. "I was originally planning to talk to you after I finished dealing with a bunch of things related to the Ministry of the Interior, but I heard you're leaving the kingdom, so I had to ask you to come over now."

"I see," Ronan said, nodding his thanks.

He did indeed have to go abroad because of Elena's situation. According to Faith, Elena needed a more reliable place to swear so that she could clearly hear the vows in her mind.

The only more reliable place to take the oath would be her hometown.

Her hometown is in the Northern Union, which is probably the union of Denmark and Sweden in Ronan's original timeline.

Specifically, it's that northeastern part of Sweden, almost reaching Finland. Beyond that, I don't know.

Because Elena had never been to her homeland, nor had her ancestors for eighteen generations. Several hundred years ago, her ancestors' tribe followed the Dan people in their southward invasion. After a long time, her ancestors remained in the Kingdom of Fas. After another long time, her ancestors became members of the royal guard. And after yet another long time, the German barbarian, Oranz, seized the throne of the Kingdom of Fas, and her ancestors were banished, becoming a group of mercenaries.

Honestly, Ronan seriously suspects that Elena and her relatives are all blonde and blue-eyed, otherwise how could they maintain their blonde hair and be stronger than the average person?

"What do you think is the fastest way to defeat the enemy?" Alexander asked.

Ronan, who had been lost in thought, was brought back to reality by those words and replied, "Military matters? I don't understand."

"Persuade them to surrender." Alexander asked himself meaningfully.

"So, the Prime Minister has come to persuade me to surrender?" Ronan asked, his curiosity piqued.

“You could say that,” Alexander admitted directly. “You’re not the kind of person who would disregard the bigger picture for the sake of political infighting, and besides, you’re someone who’s planning reforms. The Territory Management Department, which deals with the nobles, can’t just be abolished like this.”

Ronan swirled his wine glass, disagreeing. "The Ministry of the Interior can do a better job in dealing with the nobility; I'm confident of that."

“Since you’re so confident, let’s not talk about that,” Alexander said.

Ronan was momentarily surprised, not expecting the Prime Minister to agree so readily.

“Let’s talk about the Ministry of the Interior,” Alexander said, shifting the topic to the Ministry. “Since you’re still in the civil service, you’ll likely continue to rise in rank. At that point, an independent and powerful department might not be so easy to control. Besides, no matter where you go, you’ll still have one identity: the father of the next king.”

"You can control an extremely powerful department, but your son or your grandson may not be able to."

Alexander advised Ronan not to make the Ministry of the Interior too powerful.

"I will use systems to enforce this," Ronan responded.

"Hahahaha." Alexander burst into uncontrollable laughter.

"Hahahaha." Ronan laughed along.

After laughing, Alexander ate a spoonful of raw beef tartare made from freshly slaughtered and butchered beef. "Looks like you think it's a joke too."

“Indeed,” Ronan replied helplessly, as rules and regulations offered no protection whatsoever.

“So, it’s not too late to back down,” Alexander added.

“Impossible,” Ronan replied outright. “If I need to cut meat with a knife now, why would I worry about running out of meat and accidentally hurting myself? That doesn’t make sense, Mr. Prime Minister.”

"The country is currently lagging behind in terms of economy. I'm not talking about output value, since if we only consider output value, we could say we're number one in the Western Continent. What I'm talking about is our over-reliance on land output. In this respect, the Weylanders have already taken the lead over us."

"On the other hand, there is also a shortage of revenue. I know that the Ministry of Finance is indeed short of money, that's for sure."

"With this economic situation, how can one dominate the Western Continent in such a competitive landscape? I promised Ambrina that I would give her a crown."

"As for the future, what does the future have to do with me?"

Chapter 344 Persuasion to Surrender, Farewell, and a Mysterious Gift

Since the Prime Minister wasn't going to mince words or use long, complicated sentences, Ronan simply stated his thoughts directly.

“If I were merely a bureaucrat, I would agree with you that maintaining the stability of the bureaucratic system is our primary goal,” Ronan said. “But as you said, I am not just a bureaucrat now; I am the Queen’s husband, and I have a very troublesome lover.”

"To add one more thing, it's understandable that you worry that my and Ambrina's descendants won't be able to handle such a powerful institution. However, the next monarch's spouse will still be someone like me. Don't worry about the country lacking such people. As soon as the prince is born, I will announce one thing: the queen will be selected through an examination, followed by an internship. I think all regions and families will increase their efforts to cultivate high-quality women to participate in this selection."

"In this way, even if the king is an idiot, it won't be a big problem. Of course, if the king is a madman, then it will be difficult."

Ronan was direct and candid.

Ronan was willing to be candid because the prime minister was a very honest person. To remain honest in this position, whether genuine or feigned, shows one thing: he is different from ordinary officials, and he is a person with "great courage" like Dinya.

Ronan is willing to tell the truth to people with great courage.

Upon hearing Ronan's words, Prime Minister Alexander was first taken aback, then sighed, "So that's how it is. This is what His Majesty the King has been planning for the past few years."

Alexander now understands many things he couldn't understand before.

Ronan continued, "There's no way around it. Right now, a king has too much influence on a country. But sometimes the heirs to the throne are really bad. Ambrina is considered not so bad. If it weren't for me, she probably would have made a mess of the country. Not to mention that some kings are deformed idiots born from incestuous marriages."

"Prime Minister, please support me." At this moment, Ronan turned around and began to persuade the Prime Minister to surrender.

Alexander did not respond.

"Don't worry, I never take things for nothing. I promise to dissolve the Royal Chamber of Commerce, cut palace expenses, amend the law to exempt the royal family and nobles from some privileges, strengthen economic development while expanding the number of civil servants to supervise and manage some economic affairs, strengthen public education so that more commoners have the opportunity to become civil servants and magicians, thereby strengthening the power of the entire bureaucratic system."

Ronan went on and on.

The Prime Minister understood that he had lost, because once this series of promises began, the entire bureaucracy would side with Ronan, and if he continued to oppose Ronan, his subordinates would kill him first.

But he also won, because strengthening the civil service's rule was exactly what he wanted to do.

"How long are you going to be gone?" Prime Minister Alexander suddenly changed the subject and asked about this.

“It could take several months,” Ronan replied.

"I will try my best to maintain stability," said Prime Minister Alexander.

"Thank you." After expressing his gratitude, Ronan stood up. "I have to go back now."

Three days later, Ronan, Elena, and Faith were about to set off.

At the main gate of the princess's residence, Ronan, with dark circles under his eyes, embraced and kissed Ambrina, whose legs were still weak.

Last night, after dinner, they rested for a while. The two started doing it while walking together in the garden. In the garden, Ambrina first knelt down and gave Ronan oral sex until he was hard. Then, she held onto a tree trunk with her back to Ronan. Ronan pulled down her white stockings, held her waist, and entered her from behind. Afterward, they took a shower together. In the bathroom, Ambrina, still wearing her previous white stockings, sat on Ronan's lap, and Ronan thrust wildly from below. On the bed in the bedroom, Ambrina, now wearing black stockings, bent over with her buttocks sticking out, and Ronan did a horse stance. On the balcony, Ronan lifted Ambrina, now wearing flesh-colored pantyhose, into the air and thrust into her. Finally, on the carpet, Ambrina, wearing white stockings and already exhausted, lay on the carpet, and Ronan thrust into her from behind repeatedly.

Their lips parted, and Ambrina held Ronan's hand. "Come back soon."

“When I’m not around, look for Alice,” Ronan said.

"How annoying!" Ambriina said reproachfully.

Ronan couldn't help but laugh. "I'm serious, but of course, you can also go to her if you want something less serious. She has pretty good waist strength, and she also has a fake toy that's basically a one-to-one with me."

On the other side, Alice was talking to Elena, "You're such a nuisance. At such a crucial moment, never mind, if I were you, I'd just kill myself."

“You’re jealous again. But if you needed to, I believe he would go with you,” Elena replied.

“I’m not the kind of person who’s always causing trouble,” Alice said coldly.

"I'm not talking to you anymore." Elena waved and went to Dinia and Agustina.

Agustina and Elena were on good terms; they had formed a deep friendship on that tower and chatted for a while.

After Agustina finished speaking, Dinia walked over and simply said, "Have a safe journey."

At that moment, Elena hugged Dinia and whispered something in her ear.

Dinia's eyes widened, then she frowned, sighed helplessly, and turned to leave.

Elena followed.

Ronan had just received a gift from Alice that he wasn't allowed to open immediately, and was about to come over to say goodbye to Elena, Agustina, and Dinia when Dinia left.

"What happened?" Ronan asked Agustina.

“Ha, the captain forgot to give you a gift,” Agustina replied, a mysterious smile playing on her lips.

"Is it the kind that you're not allowed to open now?" Ronan asked.

Agustina nodded repeatedly.

After a while, Dinia returned, but she didn't have an extra gift box in her hand; only Elena was still holding her gift box.

"I'll be leaving the rest of the time to you," Ronan said to Dinia.

After five years of honing her skills, Dinia is no longer the same person she once was. She can now proceed with the Ministry of the Interior's affairs step by step, and as long as nothing major happens, she is fully capable of handling the situation.

Even if something really goes wrong, the situation won't be out of control.

Ronan was even somewhat hoping that a few big fish would emerge. To put it bluntly, in a place like France, reforms just don't feel right without sending a few people to the guillotine.

"Okay, be careful on your journey," Dinia said, lowering her hand that had been raised. "Anyway, be careful."

"Don't worry." Ronan nodded, then turned and left.

Ronan, Elena, and Faith left the princess's residence and traveled away from the capital. Instead of heading north, they went west to catch a boat.

Their route was to take a boat to the Northern League, and then head north to the homeland of Elena and her clan, the place of origin of the Moon Goddess.

On the way, Ronan opened Alice's gift box and was both amused and exasperated to find that it contained stockings, the kind that had been worn, with a tag indicating whose they were.

Ronan looked at Elena, "Is yours the same?"

“That’s right,” Elena replied with a grin.

“I have one here too,” Faith suddenly said, pulling out a gift box.

Chapter 345 Inside Story, Journey, Fellow Villagers Meet

Three boxes of stockings, some even worn. You guys are something else.

Ronan was speechless, frowning for a long time before finally stuffing the three boxes into his backpack and looking at Elena. "Did you instigate this?"

Elena adopted a playful yet official tone, "Your Excellency, the public perception is that it is me, but the actual situation is quite different and has little to do with me."

“Our respected Marquis is indeed charming; he unconsciously attracts women to do some irrational things,” Faith added from the side.

Ronan paused for a moment, "Isabel?"

"Oh ho, that's not what I said," Elena said innocently.

Ronan's expression turned serious. "Alright, what exactly happened?"

Faith pulled out a bunch of lifelike marionettes from somewhere and started dubbing and acting at the same time. The puppets weren't very sophisticated, and it was impossible to tell who was who, but Faith's voice imitation ability was absolutely amazing. Even when she deliberately used that theatrical dubbing style, it was still easy to tell who was who.

Her performance taught Ronan the whole story.

After learning about his unusual hobby, Isabelle prepared these 'travel provisions' and asked Faith to deliver them. Faith told Elena about this, and Elena then suggested to Alice that they send the same thing. Alice then told Ambrina, and Ambrina joined in.

Finally, before leaving, Elena went to tell Dinia that Isabelle had plagiarized her idea, that's all there was to it.

This makes it seem like Elena was the instigator, while Isabel was just a follower.

As a result, there were three boxes, and everyone had one.

Ronan patted Elena on the shoulder. "You've really worked hard."

If she hadn't done that, Ambrina and Isabelle would probably have had some disagreements.

Ten days later, Ronan and his two companions arrived in Sweden, part of the Northern Alliance. This alliance was roughly equivalent to the Kalmar Union, which consisted of the three Nordic countries in Ronan's original timeline. However, unlike the history of Ronan's timeline, in this world, the Kingdom of Norway had already withdrawn from the alliance ten years prior, leaving only Sweden and Denmark.

According to the intelligence Ronan obtained, Sweden is now also seeking independence, several decades later than the history of Ronan's original timeline.

It can only be said that geographical determinism has some merit, and history is indeed driven by the people. Some things are bound to happen, but if certain heroes are absent or a certain hero is added, things can easily change.

"It's so cold here," Elena said, rubbing her hands together and breathing out white puffs of air.

Magicians aren't really afraid of the cold, but Elena is a southerner accustomed to the Mediterranean climate, and this place is indeed a bit cold for her.

Ronan was the same.