Chapter 458 - -458
Chapter 458: Chapter -458
But as she looked at Vane, her eyes drifted to the memory of the starving pickpocket in the lower capital. She recalled the boy’s ragged tunic, his desperate, flawed theft mechanics, and the sheer volume of structural poverty existing directly beneath her perfect, optimized city.’If you are going to steal to survive the economic deficit, you must target the weakest link.’
"Request denied," Elara stated flatly.
The court erupted into panicked whispers. Vane turned pale. "B-but Regent! The transport lines! The merchants will refuse to move the grain!"
"The merchants are executing a predatory extortion tactic," Elara analyzed out loud, her voice ringing with absolute, clinical clarity. "They are utilizing the early frost as a localized threat to inflate their margins. The state will not inject a thirty percent subsidy. Instead, you will seize the transport wagons of the top three merchant guilds in the eastern sector under the Imperial Emergency Act."
Vane’s jaw dropped. "Seize them?"
"Correct," Elara said, her face a mask of perfect calm. "You will then offer a standard daily wage to the unemployed civilian populace in the lower wards to drive the wagons themselves. The state bypasses the merchant guilds entirely, the grain is transported at ten percent of the requested subsidy cost, and we inject direct capital into the hands of starving civilians."
Absolute silence fell over the throne room.
It was a ruthless, terrifyingly brilliant maneuver. It completely shattered the monopoly of the wealthy merchants and simultaneously weaponized the poor to serve the state’s logistical needs.
Julian turned his head slightly, staring at her with wide eyes. A slow, incredibly proud smirk spread across his face.
’She took the lesson from the pickpocket,’ Julian realized. ’She just optimized human compassion.’
"B-but the guilds will rebel!" another minister shouted, stepping forward.
"Let them," Elara replied seamlessly. "If they withhold their remaining goods, Commander Mahir will personally audit their warehouses for tax evasion. I calculate an eighty-five percent probability they will discover hidden assets that legally belong to the crown."
Mahir bared his teeth in a savage, terrifying smile. "It would be my absolute pleasure, Regent."
"Are there any further objections?" Elara asked, scanning the room.
None of the ministers dared to breathe, let alone object.
"Excellent. The subsidies are resolved. Next item."
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Late that night, Elara sat alone in her private office. The moon cast long, silver rays across her grand oak desk. Julian had retired to his own quarters an hour ago, though he had lingered at her door much longer than necessary, resulting in another severe spike in her internal thermal anomaly.